


You're Ripped at Every Edge, but You're a Masterpiece

by titaniumplatedspine



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - College/University, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Blow Jobs, Bottom Yuri Plisetsky, Character's Name Spelled as Viktor, Dancer Mila, Dancer Yuri, Everyone smokes weed, F/M, Hand Jobs, Leo has some indecent thoughts about Guang Hong, M/M, Recreational Drug Use, Roommates, Stoner Beka, Top Otabek Altin, Viktor owns a cafe, otabek is a mess, supportive best friends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-27
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-01-06 01:38:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 45,122
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12201318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/titaniumplatedspine/pseuds/titaniumplatedspine
Summary: The college au where Otabek is a stoner who hates pants but loves a certain pretty blonde, and Yuri refuses to be left behind again, so he does whatever he can to avoid him.





	1. one

**Author's Note:**

> Title from [ Colors](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGulAZnnTKA) by Halsey

Leo unlocked his apartment door, then stopped at the door at the thick haze of smoke obstructing his view of living room. “Are you fucking kidding me?” he grumbled slamming the door behind him and dropping his backpack loudly on the floor. “Beks! What the fuck?!”

Leo stomped down the hallway where he could hear music leading to his roommate’s bedroom. Flinging open the door as loudly as he could he was greeted by the sight of Otabek wearing bear footie pajamas and eating peanut butter out of a jar by the spoonful. More importantly he was clearly high as shit and didn’t even notice Leo’s entrance. As Leo was watching, Otabek put down the peanut butter and reached for the bowl and lighter next to him, and Leo leapt forward and snatched the bowl before Otabek could reach it. Otabek didn’t even have the awareness to jump, instead just tossing a lazy half smirk at Leo and offering him the lighter. 

Leo proceeded to swat the lighter out of Otabek’s hand seething, “Beks! What are you doing? We HAVE THE INTERVIEW TODAY!”

“The interv...oh fuck.” Leo watched the awareness slowly (slowly, so very slowly) spread across his roommate’s face, before he finally leapt to his feet and began throwing things around the room looking for his clothes. “I gotta shower, but I’ll be ready to go in 15!” he yelled over his shoulder as he ran for the bathroom.

“Otabek Altin what are you talking about, we are interviewing the director of a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility and you are higher than a kite” Leo shrieked after him.

“It’s too late to change that now!” Otabek yelled back as he slammed the bathroom door.

◈ 

Yuri Plisetsky was wiping down tables at the small cafe and counting down the minutes until his shift ended when the two men walked in. One had long brown hair pulled half back and the other had dark hair in an undercut, and oh fuck, Yuri knew that guy.

Yuri squished himself behind the corner table and ducked down pretending to clean something off the ground, keeping an eye out on the two men at the register. They appeared to be in some sort of argument, the brown haired one upset, and the other blowing him off while he ordered. It was an excruciating few minutes for Yuri waiting for them to be distracted so he could sneak in the back. Luckily it was only a few minutes before he saw his manager Viktor hand them a to-go bag and a couple coffees and they were out the door without spotting him. 

“Yuri, you want to explain why you’ve been hiding on the floor for the past 10 minutes?” the question was lobbed his away along with a piece of wadded up sandwich paper that bounced off the back of his head. Yuri jumped and smacked his head on the table. Trying to grab the back of his head just led to him smacking his hand on a chair, and when he tried to stand up he tripped in the narrow space and fell back down. With a string of violent curses directed at the furniture and especially Viktor, Yuri decided his best bet was just to lay on the ground and wait to die. 

“Awww, c’mon Yuri, don’t do that.” Yuri’s eye line was invaded by the smiling face and bright red hair of his roommate Mila. “If you don’t get up we’re going to be late for class. Why are you on the floor anyways?”

“He’s been hiding back there ever since those last two handsome young men walked in to buy some food.” Viktor called unhelpfully from behind the cash register. Yuri growled and threw his cleaning rag in Viktor’s direction. Viktor somehow managed to catch it and began wiping down the front counters, smiling his infuriating heart shaped grin at Yuri all the while. 

“Hot guys, huh?” Mila’s eyes on him were sharp and speculative, and she tipped her head in question. Yuri just shook his head minutely, not wanting to get into it with Viktor there, and allowed Mila to pull him up. “Well, go grab your shit so we can get to class. We’ll discuss hot guys and how badly you need to get laid on the walk there.” Mila pushed him towards the back, and walked to the counter to order their typical coffees and snacks for class. Yuri ran in the back, glad she was distracting Viktor for him, and was clocked out and ready to go in record time. 

“You got that coffee ready yet old man?” Yuri yelled, aiming a kick at Viktor’s legs as he ran past. Viktor didn’t even bother to look at Yuri as he dodged and threw a sack of food his way. Yuri could see the florist from the shop down the road was in buying lunch, and Viktor was too busy flirting to pay Yuri much mind. Yuri traded Mila a croissant for his coffee, and with a hollered “Later geezer!” they were out the door. 

Mila was patient, letting Yuri shove half his croissant into his mouth before she asked, “So a hot guy huh? Wouldn’t be the same hot guy you’ve been avoiding for the past two months would it?” Yuri didn’t know why he wasn’t expecting it, but the shock made him choke on his food all the same. Mila smacked him on the back a couple times and once she was assured he was breathing properly bumped her shoulder into his, “Well?”

“I don’t even know why you’re asking hag, you know it is.” Yuri grumbled at his coffee, refusing to make eye contact. “He hasn’t been to the shop in a while, I thought he’d given up.”

“Well apparently you made quite the impression.” Mila waited, but since Yuri clearly wasn’t willing to talk about it anymore she let it go and hooked her arm through his to make him walk faster, “Hurry up, I want to check my homework answers against yours before class starts.”

◈ 

“I can’t believe we fucking pulled that off. How did no one at an AODA treatment facility realize you were high?!” Leo was vibrating through the apartment, ripping the tie out of his hair and changing into his favorite comfy clothes before tearing back into the kitchen to grab a drink. Otabek for his part just dropped his pants and shirt on the floor of the living room, and was now smoking a bowl while staring at the bag containing the rest of the food he’d bought at the cafe. Leo slowed enough to notice the normally stoic man had gone absolutely blank. “Beks? You ok bro?”

Otabek didn’t answer, just taking another hit off the bowl and staring at the bag. leo waited for a response, but when he saw one wasn’t forthcoming he stood directly in front of Otabek, forcing him to look at him and waiting for any kind of response. Otabek finally exhaled and scrubbed his hand across his face. 

“I’m fine Leo. Let me find some eye drops and let’s put together the notes from the interview while everything is still fresh.” 

“Maybe put some pants on while you’re at it. I don’t need your dick swinging around while we’re working.” The comment got at least a hint of a smirk from Otabek as he meandered off to his room to look for the eyedrops. Leo waited until he was gone before grabbing the bag from the cafe and tossing it in the fridge. He didn’t know why his friend had been so obsessed with the place the past few months, or why he was so despondent every time he left, but it was getting old, and Leo was determined to find a way to fix it.


	2. two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to the lovely [ded](http://archiveofourown.org/users/ded_i_am_just_ded/pseuds/ded_i_am_just_ded) for the headcanon involving Otabek's inability to dress himself.

Yuri had a routine. His alarm went off every day at 6am. He would meet Mila in the kitchen for a cup of coffee and the two would go for a run. They took turns on who got first shower, while the other prepared breakfast. If they both had class that morning they’d walk to campus where they split up for the day. Yuri spent every morning in classes. Tuesdays were for lunch and Psych lab with Guang Hong. Thursday evenings were for anatomy lab with Mila. His other evenings were dedicated to to homework and dance classes when he didn’t have to work. Sunday afternoons were reserved for visiting Grandpa. 

Mila thought he was boring and that he needed to get laid. Guang Hong was worried he was giving himself an ulcer. They were both probably right. 

Yuri loved his friends, but they didn’t understand. Mila’s father was a well to do lawyer, and Guang Hong’s family owned a successful restaurant chain. Neither of them had to worry about their tuition. They had loving families to support them, and homes to go back to during the holidays.

Yuri had a father he’d never met, and a junkie mother who’d dropped him off at the sitters one day and never come back. He had a Grandpa who had to move into assisted living and sell their home. He had a partial scholarship, and his job at the cafe to cover his tuition. No, his friends didn’t understand any of that. 

The one thing Yuri had ever gotten lucky in was meeting Lilia Baranovskaya. Lilia had taught some dance classes at the community center Yuri attended after school as a child. She’d seen a talent in Yuri and taken him on as a student. She gave him a way to channel all his anger and negative emotions. Dance classes with Lilia had also brought him his friendship with Mila, and had introduced him to Viktor. She was fierce and strict, but she was an angel as far as Yuri was concerned. 

...Except for Friday nights when she tortured him and her other students during their advanced pointe classes. Yuri’s thighs were trembling, and the sweat had soaked his shirt. Next to him Mila was supporting herself with her hands on her knees and panting. 

“Kill me.” Yuri muttered out of the corner of his mouth to Mila, “If our friendship has ever mattered to you at all, kill me now and make it quick.”

“No can do.” Mila panted at him in return, “I’d have to train a new roommate.”

Yuri’s huff of laughter was cut short by Lilia’s voice cracking through the air, commanding them to go more one more time through their routine. Yuri and Mila both silenced their discontent before it could escape audibly, forcing themselves to stand up and go through the leaps and spins one last time.

◈

“Get dressed.” Mila’s command was accompanied by a bundle of fabric colliding with Yuri’s face where he had been sprawled out on the couch reading a textbook. “You’re coming out with me tonight.”

“No Baba. I have no interest in whatever frat boy nightmare you want to go to. Call someone else.” Yuri pushed the clothes onto the other end of the couch, and resumed reading his book not prepared for Mila to tackle him on the couch. 

“Not this time Yuri. You haven’t gone out and done anything since the semester started. It’s been over a month. You need to get out of the house.”

“Baba, I’m tired. My feet hurt. I have homework.”

“No excuses! Get ready or not, either way I’m dragging you out of this house with me in 30 minutes!”

◈

Otabek started every day by repeatedly hitting snooze on his three separate alarms until the absolute last minute possible. He would throw on the first clean smelling clothes he could find, and leave for class, getting in the door at the last possible minute. He did his homework and worked on his mixes in the afternoon. In the evenings he went to the gym and worked out while it was near empty. He DJ’d at his friends parties, and some local bars when he was lucky. He was a pretty good student, a loving son, and a loyal friend. Otabek also spent almost all of his time high.

He didn’t really have a reason for it. He just liked the feeling. Soon he discovered he could function almost as well high as he could straight. So he just kept doing it. He stayed away from other drugs after a bad experience with some mushrooms. He didn’t smoke during his finals or family events, and he planned on quitting once he graduated college. He just felt like in the meantime the weed helped him sleep and made his workouts go by easier. 

it was Friday, and he and Leo were over at JJ’s, where Otabek had quickly taken over the music selection. The three men were smoking off of JJ’s hookah while JJ’s girlfriend Isabella was putting the finishing touches on her make-up. Leo was texting a friend confirming the location of the party they were going to, and Otabek was in a blissed out state listening to the music. 

“Oh no. Nonononono. Otabek my doll, please tell me you are not wearing that shirt.” 

Otabek lazily opened one eye to meet Isabella’s horrified gaze where she had frozen in the entrance to the living room, then glanced down at his sweatshirt. It was blue and emblazoned with a cat that had a unicorn horn. Maybe not his most fashionable choice, but it was clean. He just shrugged at Isabella, and returned to scrolling through the music on his phone. JJ and Leo were having difficulty controlling their giggling, while Isabella looked more like she wanted to cry. 

“Get up Beks. I am not letting you go out in public like that.”

◈

Yuri had to give Mila credit, as much as he didn’t want to be out tonight, he was having a great time now. She’d talked him into a pair of skinny jeans and a simple v-neck shirt. His hair was pulled half up and he had done a couple shots with Mila before they left the apartment. He was sufficiently buzzed now, and he was dancing with Mila and a guy with sandy hair that she knew from her nursing classes.

“I need a drink!” Yuri yelled over the music to Mila, who nodded at him and handed him her cup to fill up as well. Yuri mock snarled at her, but took the cup anyways and began to back away towards the keg in the corner when he collided into someone.

“Oh shit sorry!” Yuri yelled as he turned around grateful the cups he was carrying were empty when he recognized the figure he’d run into. “Otabek.”

The other man took a deep breath, and Yuri noticed he was holding onto his arm as though to steady him from when he fell, or maybe just to keep him from bolting. “Yura. I-”

“Yuri, what is taking so long for my drink?” Mila screeched, throwing herself between Yuri and Otabek, and effectively separating them. Otabek stepped back in surprise, a small furrow between his eyebrows, and Mila took the opportunity to haul Yuri towards the door, “Drop the cups and move, unless you’re ready to talk with him.”

Yuri glanced back over his shoulder to see Otabek watching him from the crowd, but with a shiver he took Mila’s advice and together they fled the party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can find Otabek's awesome cat sweater, as well as his bear pajamas from the last chapter [here](https://ded-i-am-just-ded.tumblr.com/post/165670231434/titaniumplatedspine-ded-i-am-just-ded-i).
> 
> Find me on [tumblr](https://titaniumplatedspine.tumblr.com/).


	3. three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuri and Otabek's first meeting

It was the beginning of June, and Yuri and Mila were celebrating. The semester had finished a couple weeks before, and they’d finally finished unpacking their new apartment. They’d started with drinks at home while Mila got ready, (Yuri just threw on some skinny jeans and a random tiger shirt), then met up with some fellow dance students, and were now wandering the streets with some pizza in hand looking for their last stop for the night. Mila was sliding around in Yuri’s sneakers, with his hoodie over her shoulders (“I told you it was gonna be too cold for shorts Baba.”) while Yuri was walking around in his socks and carrying Mila’s flats which she had declared too ‘squinchy’ before kicking them off into the street.

“It’s around here somewhere Yuri. We’re close.” Mila announced around her mouthful of cheese, peering at the house numbers.

Yuri scoffed gently, and kept the hand with her shoes at her back in case she fell again, “You’ve said that for the past five blocks hag.” Yuri was too cautious to ever really get truly drunk, and had kept himself at a comfortably buzzed level. Mila had taken advantage of the fact that she had a semi-sober, responsible party to look after her and was far more intoxicated than Yuri ever wanted to be. He was hoping the carbs and grease in the pizza would help sober her up a little before she drank more. 

“There!” Mila jumped and pointed triumphantly to a house with a green porch light. “That’s the one we want!” Mila threw her pizza crust into a flower bed and began tugging on Yuri’s arm, dragging him towards the house she had indicated. 

Almost the second they made it in the door Mila had spotted some of her other friends and had joined them for shots and a fiercely competitive beer pong tournament. Yuri kept an eye on her for a little bit, before getting dragged onto the makeshift dance floor with some girls he knew from his own classes. They liked it when he danced with them because he actually could dance, and because he was very good at keeping creepy assholes away. 

“Yuri,” one of the girls he was currently dancing with tugged on his arm, “I think that guy is looking at you.” Yuri glanced over his shoulder to where the girl indicated and picked out the guy right away. For starters, he was wearing a sleeveless shirt with a technicolor owl. Secondly, his eyes were very dark and intense, and they were definitely focused on Yuri. Yuri took another second to appraise the man, deciding he liked the look of his strong arms and sharp jawline. He made eye contact and smirked at the man, and with a toss of his blonde hair resumed his dancing, this time feeling the stare at his back. 

It didn’t take long before Yuri felt a slight tap on his shoulder, and he turned to see the man, eyes just as intense, but lips quirked just the slightest bit. Yuri threw a quick wink at his classmates and turned around to continue dancing, throwing his arms around the other man’s shoulders to include him. Yuri was delighted when after only a second of hesitance the man joined in his dancing. He was clearly not trained in the way Yuri was, but he moved skillfully enough.

“You were watching me.” Yuri murmured into the stranger’s ear, the alcohol making him just brave enough to slide in closer to the other man and playfully tug on the longer strands of the other man’s undercut. 

The other man looked at Yuri from under the most absurd set of lashes he had ever seen, and leaned in closer to reply directly in his ear, “Of course I was watching you. You’re the most radiant thing I’ve ever seen. I couldn’t look away.” Yuri shuddered at the warm breath on his neck, and the man smirked upon noticing. “I’m Otabek.” he said and slid one hand more securely onto Yuri’s hip, his thumb just brushing the skin over the waistband of Yuri’s jeans. 

Yuri preened under the contact, and turned so his back was to the other man’s chest. Otabek’s thumb stroked over the small section of skin at Yuri’s waist as they danced, the other hand wrapped loosely around his ribcage. Yuri leaned back into the other man, and could feel the hard bulge in the other’s jeans, but Otabek made no move to take this any further than a dance. His hands were kept in their relatively chaste locations, and he didn’t press his hips any further against Yuri. If not for the bulge in his jeans Yuri might have thought him uninterested. As it was the thumb on his hips, and the feeling of the solid body behind Yuri were slowly driving him insane. He needed the other man’s hands on him now.

“C’mon.” Yuri muttered, grabbing Otabek’s hand and tugging him forward. “Let’s get out of here.”

◈

At the last second Yuri had remembered he couldn’t actually leave the party without Mila. Instead he had dragged Otabek behind him until he had managed to locate a spare storage room in the basement. Yuri pulled Otabek in behind him, slamming the door behind them, and kicking a box over to secure it shut.

Yuri pushed Otabek against the wall and dropped to his knees in front of him, fumbling to undo his jeans. Otabek was no help whatsoever, instead running his hands through Yuri’s hair, and making small pleased noises as it slipped through his fingers. He seemed almost surprised when Yuri finally managed to shove his pants and briefs down enough that his dick was freed. Yuri moaned at the sight. Otabek’s dick was as gorgeous as the rest of him, thicker than any other Yuri had ever seen and Yuri needed to taste it right now.

He dipped his head forward to lick at the tip, and Otabek’s hands tightened reflexively in his hair. Yuri moaned at the sensation and took his dick deeper into his mouth, doing his best to take the entire length of him. He built up a rhythm, bobbing his head on Otabek’s dick, and using his hand to stroke at the part he couldn’t fit. Otabek shivered above him, swearing and praising Yuri in equal measure. 

“Hey, hey, hey, c’mere.” Otabek hissed out to Yuri, and he suddenly was being hauled up by his arms. Otabek used shaky hands to free Yuri’s erection, and then he wrapped a hand around both of them. Yuri groaned and let his head drop down onto the shoulder of the slightly shorter man. Otabek kept stroking them both together, and Yuri began to thrust his hips into Otabek’s fist. 

Yuri curled himself around Otabek, one arm wrapped around his shoulders, the other worming up the back of his shirt so he could dig his nails into the muscles of his back. A particularly good twist of Otabek’s hand led to Yuri tipping his head back to curse at the ceiling. Otabek used it as an opportunity to nip and suck gently at Yuri’s neck, soothing the spots immediately after with soft open mouthed kisses. 

Otabek sped up his hand, and reached his other hand around Yuri’s body to grasp firmly at his ass. Yuri was moaning and cursing in earnest now, and it was sooner than he’d like before he was coming into the other man’s hand. Otabek groaned and followed only a moment behind him, keeping his arm around Yuri as he guided them both into a heap on the floor. 

“Well fuck.” Yuri said when he finally caught his breath, lazily rolling over to look at the man sitting next to him. 

“Yeah.” Otabek agreed, looking for something to wipe his hand off with, finally just wiping it off on the floor. “Give me your phone.”

“My what now?”

“Your phone, give me your phone..” Otabek said again, waving his hand at Yuri impatiently. Yuri stared at him in suspicion and Otabek let out a sight in his direction. “I want to see you again. It’s easier if I have your number. So can I see your phone or not?” Yuri took a minute to think about it, but he couldn’t say he wasn’t intrigued at the thought of seeing Otabek again. He had to dig into the pocket of his pants that were still bunched around his thighs, but he managed to retrieve his phone successfully and hand it over. Otabek quickly programmed his number in, and sent himself a text. Yuri used the time to straighten out his clothing before taking his phone back from Otabek and checking it for any missed messages. 

“Oh shit, my friend is freaking out and trashed. I gotta go get her.” Yuri scrambled to get his feet under him, but before he could Otabek grabbed a fistful of his shirt and pulled him in for a kiss that made Yuri question why he was leaving.

“Go get your friend.” Otabek said with a little push to Yuri’s chest, the look on his face soft. “I’ll call you tomorrow.” Yuri managed to stumble out of the room, sneaking one last glance at the man still half dressed on the floor, watching him with that soft look on his face. Maybe this would be a good thing. Yuri ran up the steps to find Mila, but he was already thinking ahead to the next day’s call from Otabek.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Find me on [tumblr](https://titaniumplatedspine.tumblr.com/)


	4. four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Otabek is a mess. Leo is worried for his friend, but also wants to bang his new project partner Guang Hong.

Leo rushed down the sidewalk, running late for his meeting after staying up most of the night babysitting Otabek. He had seen the little blonde run away from his friend at the party last night, and the stricken look on his friend's face. Otabek refused to answer any of his questions about it, and instead spent the rest of the night attempting to drown himself in cheap vodka. He’d been an incoherent, self loathing mess when Leo had finally carried him in the door with JJ’s assistance. 

They’d taken turns sitting with him in the bathroom while he threw up and mumbled to himself in Kazakh until he’d finally made it back to his room and passed out. Leo had sent JJ and Bella home at that point, and propped Otabek on his side before curling up in his friend’s bed to sleep. Otabek had been restless, rolling over every few minutes and mumbling in his sleep. Leo woke every time he did so, terrified he’d find his friend choking on his own vomit. 

Otabek had fully woken up a couple hours later and tried to flush all of his weed down the toilet, and had raged at Leo when he stopped him. He had successfully broken his favorite bong before Leo could intervene, and tried to shatter another. Leo had locked all the various pipes as well as the rest of the weed in his room after that. He had exited his room to find Otabek had thrown up again and was showering. At least he was in the shower and the water was on. Leo was fairly sure Otabek just sat on the floor of the shower until the hot water ran out. He’d wandered out of the bathroom dripping wet and naked and begrudgingly drank the water and took the ibuprofen Leo pushed on him, before collapsing into bed face first on top of his blankets and passing out for good. Leo loved his friend, but not enough to sleep in his room while he was wet and naked so he retreated to the couch for a quick nap before his lunch date. 

Leo had ended up oversleeping, because of course he had, and had rushed through a shower and brushing his teeth. He threw on his favorite pair of jeans and a beanie before checking on Otabek. His roommate was still passed out in his bed, still naked, and still not suffocating on his own vomit; but at least now he was curled up in a tight ball under the blankets. Leo figured that was good enough and threw his laptop in his backpack and grabbed his skateboard before running out the door. 

The university ran a program with the local school district where university students mentored children having difficulty-academic or otherwise-in school. A pair of university students was assigned to a small group of elementary or middle school students, and today was Leo’s first meeting with his partner for the year. All he knew was that he was looking for a boy named Guang Hong with brown hair who had told him he’d be wearing a blue button down. Leo was praying his partner this year was a good one. Last year he’d been paired with some meathead from the football team who was only participating because his coach required some volunteer hours. He’d barely shown up, and when he did he thought playing catch with the kids was enough. Leo had hoped for a better partner this year, and he was worried he was going to ruin it all by being late to their first meeting.

Coincidentally, Leo was meeting his partner at the same cafe Otabek had been so obsessed with lately. He came to a stop and flipped his board up into his hands in one practiced motion, shifting it under his arm to carry inside with him. He scanned the room and spotted a brunette wearing a blue button down at the counter, chatting with the platinum haired man who served him on his previous visit. He yanked his beanie off and shoved it in a pocket of his backpack, before smoothing his hair and approaching the counter, hoping this was the right person. 

“Excuse me, are you Guang Hong?” he called out as he got closer, and his breath caught as the other turned around. The other man was slightly built, shorter than him by a few inches, with a sweet face and the most adorable freckles running along his cheekbones. Leo wanted to either bundle him up and protect him from the world or fuck his face until he cried. 

“I am, and you’re Leo? It’s nice to finally meet you face to face.” The other boy smiled, and adjusted the strap of his messenger bag. He was all sweet pink lips and big brown eyes. Leo was going to take him home and feed him chocolates in a bath filled with rose petals. Leo was going to tie him to the bed and eat his ass until he screamed. 

“I hope you weren’t waiting too long. My roommate had a bit of a crazy night, and I didn’t want to leave until I knew he’d be ok. Why don’t I get you lunch for making you wait?” Leo offered, hoping that his explanation not only excused his lateness, but painted him in a positive light in the eyes of this gorgeous creature.

“Oh you don’t have to do that! I was really only here a minute before you!” Guang Hong protested, trying to wave Leo off. 

“No, it’s okay really. If it makes you feel better you can get the next one.” Leo gave the younger man his most reassuring smile, and was pleased at the way the other flushed and gave a small, embarrassed smile back in response. “Do you know what you want? My roommate loves this place, and pretty much everything he’s ever brought home has been good.”

“My friend Yuri actually works here. He dragged me in a few times for lunch and to study, and now I’m hooked on their chai lattes. I bet he knows your roommate if he comes here a lot.” 

Leo and Guang Hong placed their orders, and Leo managed to get his wallet out in time to pay for both of them. The wink it earned him from the owner was weird, but the pleased glance from under Guang Hong’s long lashes was worth it. Leo smirked to himself as he followed Guang Hong to a table in the back. This year’s partnership was already exceeding his expectations.

◈

“ I want him to sit on my face and never leave. I will gladly suffocate to death as long as his balls are in my mouth when it happens.” Leo was stretched out on their ratty living room couch, waving his hand in the air while he expanded on Guang Hong’s many redeeming qualities. He paused in his rant to take another hit from the joint Otabek had just passed him, ignoring his friend’s arched eyebrow, the only indication of amusement in an otherwise blank expression. “I would let him piss on me Otabek. That’s how gorgeous he is.”

“God, I’d forgotten what a freak you really can be.” Otabek snorted at him as he took the joint back and took his own hit. “I knew there was a reason we’d never hooked up.”

“Excuse me,” Leo exclaimed, shooting upright and stabbing a finger in the direction of his friend, “If we never hooked up it’s only because you’re only interested in that vanilla face to face shit with hours of cuddling after, not because I just happen to be more adventurous than you.”

“No, I’m with Beks on this one. You’re a fucking freak Leo.” Isabella laughed at the outraged expression on Leo’s face as she hopped over the back of the couch and pushed Leo’s legs out of her way. She stretched out to take the joint from Otabek’s hand. He relinquished it with the kind of smirk he only allowed to slip out when he was high. Isabella took her hit with a relieved sigh, passing the joint off to JJ who had walked in just behind her and was now sitting on the ground at her feet. 

“I don’t even know what we’re talking about and I agree that Leo is a freak. I’ve heard way too many of your stories dude.” Leo snarled and flipped his friend off, and JJ offered him the joint as consolation. Leo took it with a huff and took his next hit viciously, still scowling at his friends. 

“Leo met his partner for that mentoring project today.” Otabek explained. “He’s going to let this guy piss on him while he eats his ass.” Leo choked on the smoke he had just inhaled, and sat up sputtering and wheezing. Isabella scooted over to rub his back while Otabek took the joint from him. He grabbed a bottle of water and gulped some down, fighting the burning sensation left in his lungs and throat.

“You’re a dick Altin.” he finally proclaimed when he could speak again. Otabek raised the joint to him in a mock salute, before passing it back off to Isabella. “That’s not even what I said.”

“Oh really? Because I definitely heard you say you’d let him piss on you as we walked in.” Isabella blew a series of smoke rings, eyeing him skeptically from her corner of the couch. She passed the joint on to JJ to finish off, and grabbed the blanket from the back of the couch that was left there just for her. The girl was always cold, and it only got worse when she was high. 

“Ugh, why are you even here? Don’t you two have your own apartment?” Leo flopped back on the couch pouting. Isabella and JJ had been together since high school, and Otabek was intensely private about whatever love life he may or may not have. Leo’s tendency to be vocal about his hook ups and desires had earned him more than his share of good natured teasing from his friends throughout the years. In return he just mocked them for what he classified as their boring monogamous relationships. 

JJ smirked up at him from the ground and reached his arm out to pat Leo’s knee. JJ already had the half lidded drowsy look he got from smoking, and he had his head tipped back to sit in Isabella’s lap. Isabella was running her hands through JJ’s hair soothingly, and he looked ready to pass out. 

“We just came to check in on Otabek after last night, and hear about your meeting Leo. I know you were worried after that blockhead you had last year.” Even high Isabella was always poised and elegant, and she was no less now. Sometimes Leo was a little jealous of JJ for securing a relationship with someone who was so refined, but then he remembered he only liked dicks. “I can see Otabek is still alive, and based on the way you were vomiting up fantasies when we walked in I take it your meeting went well.”

Leo made a face at Isabella, while Otabek flushed the smallest amount and ripped the paper for the new joint he’d been rolling. He had been deeply apologetic and embarrassed when Leo had arrived home. He had in fact cleaned their whole apartment and done all of Leo’s laundry, and was about to start on cooking meals for the week when Leo walked in and stopped him. They were friends. Taking care of each other’s drunk asses was just what they did. That being said, Leo was also wondering what had upset his normally incredibly level friend to that degree, and would have said so but Otabek fucked up another joint and swore under his breath before stomping off to the kitchen for a bottle of water.

“Yo, why are we smoking joints anyways? Where’s literally any of the pipes?” JJ queried still from his spot on the floor. Leo tipped his head wondering the same thing, then remembered he’d left them locked in his room when he left.

“I had to lock them up last night. Otabek broke Big Blue and was gunning for the others. It was going to be a massacre.” JJ’s jaw dropped and he whipped his head around to stare at Otabek who was currently muching on a bag of grapes and digging through the fridge for a second snack. 

“But Otabek loves Big Blue! Otabek, you loved that bong!” Otabek shrugged as he came back to the living room armed with a whole package of string cheese and water. “Is this because of that blonde from the party last night?”

Otabek visibly tensed for a split second before shaking his head and offering JJ some string cheese to distract him. Leo watched the interaction with interest, and noticed Isabella watching with narrowed eyes. She met his gaze and nodded. Whatever was going on, she was seeing it too. 

“Otabek,” began Isabella gently. “you were so drunk you couldn’t walk and you were throwing up for hours. That’s not nothing.”

Otabek looked away and exhaled hard through his teeth. Leo and Isabella both watched him and waited to see what he’d say. “Look,” he finally began, “we had a thing for a while. It didn’t end well, and it was completely my fault. Can we just leave it there for now?” The others nodded reluctantly, and Leo tried to figure out when Otabek could have had anything with the blonde. it had to have been over the summer while the rest of them were visiting their families. Leo would drop this for now, but he was going to figure out what happened, and make his friend stop ripping himself apart over it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the love you're giving this fic. I took a break from writing because I was working on YOI Halloween week (which I didn't even finish, because life) but I'm back at it now. This should update approximately weekly.


	5. five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flashback to Otabek and Yuri's first date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took a lot longer than I expected and I'm sorry for that. I got sidetracked with some family things, and I'm taking on some extra duties at work that are pretty time consuming. 
> 
> This is another flashback. At this point I'm planning on telling the story in an every other chapter format. One of the present situation, and then flashbacks revealing the backstory. I'll make sure to label the flashbacks in the chapter summary.

Yuri and Mila were curled up in a lazy mess on their living room couch, enjoying a rare afternoon off together as they recovered from the parties the night before. Mila had managed a shower and was nursing a Bloody Mary, insisting to Yuri it would cure the remnants of her hangover. Yuri had gotten called in to work to help with the lunch shift, and after he returned home promptly made some tea and curled up in a nest of blankets on the couch. His mug was still sitting half full on the end table, long since cold. There was a marathon of Golden Girls on the TV that neither of them was actually watching. Mila was on her phone looking at photos from the night before, and Yuri was dozing, occasionally waking up enough to nod at whatever photo or video Mila was trying to show him. 

_It’s the eye of the tiger, it’s the thrill of the fight_  
_Rising up to the challenge of our rival_  
_And the last known survivor, stalks his prey in the night_  
_And he’s watching us all with the eye of the tiger_

Yuri’s ringtone startled him awake and he nearly slid right off the couch as he sat up and scrambled for the phone. No one ever called him except his grandpa, and it was with that thought in mind that he answered.

“Hey Grandpa.”

There was no response to his greeting, and Yuri shifted the phone to his other ear while he swept his hair back from his face. He was trying to untangle himself from the blankets well enough to sit up, but he was mostly just making the situation worse.

“Um, this is Otabek and I’m definitely not anyone’s grandpa. I think we met at a party last night?”

Yuri froze. He had been excited about the guy calling last night, but once he sobered up he hadn’t expected it would actually happen. Certainly not the next day. He figured if the guy had called at all it would be the next time he was drinking, sometime after midnight when he was looking for a hookup. 

“I’m sorry, I guess I have a wrong number. I can let you go..”

“No, wait! I’m sorry, it is me.” Yuri yelled out before the other man could hang up. From the other end of the couch MIla looked up with interest, an eyebrow raised in Yuri’s direction. “Sorry, sorry, you woke me up from a nap and no one ever calls me except my grandpa...just give me a second.” Yuri flailed and fought his way free of his blanket prison before running out the door to his and Mila’s small balcony. He slammed the door behind him and sat down with his legs dangling between the gaps in the metal railing. 

“I’m glad I did have the right number.” and the voice on the other end of the phone was so pleased and warm that it caused Yuri to immediately flush. “I would have been really disappointed to find out I missed out on seeing you again.”

“God you’re a sap.” was the only response Yuri could come up with, and he flushed again. One of the most attractive men in the world actually sought him out, and he responded by insulting him. Yuri would be lucky if the guy didn’t immediately hang up. However it seemed luck was on his side for once, since the man just let out an amused sounding scoff instead of hanging up and blocking Yuri’s number. 

“So you’re telling me you don’t like it? Because I have to warn you, this is pretty mild as far as sap goes.”

Yuri squirmed in his spot on the balcony, and covered his face with his hands like it could shield him from the other man seeing his embarrassment. “Well, I didn’t exactly say that.” he finally conceded from behind his fingers, and was rewarded by a low chuckle this time. 

“I actually was hoping I could see you again. I have some plans with my family tonight, but I’m open tomorrow afternoon?”

“Oh, ummm give me a second.” Yuri pulled his phone away from his ear to check on his schedule for the week. “I actually have to work the next two nights but I’m off Wednesday night after seven and all day Thursday if any of that works? Otherwise I don’t have any nights open until next Monday. ”

Yuri twisted some loose strands of hair around his finger while he waited for Otabek to answer. He had already exceeded his expectations by actually calling the next day, but Yuri was aware his schedule could be a lot to deal with. He figured maybe they’d meet up for one or two more hook ups before Otabek realized there were less complicated ways to get dick. Yuri was okay with it. Hook ups were less likely to interfere with his school and work schedule, and Otabek was hot.

“I get done with my internship at five Wednesday, but I have to be back there early Thursday morning. How about I pick you up for a late lunch after? Around three?”

“I think I can make that work.”

◈

Yuri was stomping around his room tearing his closet apart. Why in the world had he agreed to a late lunch? He was starving, and being hungry made him crankier than normal. On top of that they were in the middle of a heat wave and their air conditioning had broken that morning. Their landlord had apologized profusely, but still couldn’t come over until the next day to look at it.

“MILA! WHERE THE FUCK ARE MY JEANS YOU HAG!”

Mila appeared in his doorway in a crop top and the smallest shorts Yuri had ever seen, a bottle of beer in her hand. She pursed her lips as she surveyed the disaster that was now his room, before eyeing Yuri in particular. He was glaring at the now empty closet, wearing nothing but his boxer briefs and a black v-neck t-shirt. 

“Why the fuck do you even want your jeans in this heat? You’re going to die.”

Yuri crossed his arms and pouted at her. She was probably right, but Otabek had texted him that morning and specified that he needed to wear jeans for today, and preferably some kind of boots or at least sneakers. He had several pairs of jeans flung on the floor, but none of them were the ones he wanted. The ones he wanted were old and beaten in enough to be comfortable, but still fit in the right way to make his ass look fantastic. They were also missing.

“Relax little kitten, I knew you’d want those for your date so I washed them last night. They’re in the bathroom.” Yuri gaped at Mila for a second before flinging himself forward to hug her before continuing to the bathroom. There his pants were, folded and waiting for him on the sink. 

He yanked the pants on and quickly ran a brush through his hair. He didn’t have time to do much with it, so he just threw it half up. He washed his face before throwing on just a touch of eyeliner and mascara. He shoved his wallet, keys, and some tinted chapstick in his pockets and was tying his favorite leopard print chucks when he heard a knock at the apartment door. He saw Mila peak her head out of her bedroom and take a step forwards and he snarled silently in her direction before rushing to the door, opening it and stepping out to slam it behind him all in one smooth motion. 

Rushing out the door the way he had had caused him to slam right into Otabek’s chest, and he was quick to catch Yuri around the waist to keep him from falling over. Yuri took a second to appraise the other man who was dressed in faded grey jeans and a blue henley with the buttons left open. Yuri was practically salivating over the glimpse of tanned skin he could see, but then he remembered Mila and her tendency to embarrass him. She also flirted with anything that moved once she had a drink in her, and he decided it was best to get going. 

“Sorry, shit, I was just trying to escape my roommate. C’mon we have to leave before she decides to be a nosy ass bitch.” Yuri was tugging Otabek’s hand, looking for a car on the roadway, but Otabek wasn’t moving fast enough. Actually he’d dug his heels in and stopped next to a motorcycle on the road. “What are you doing, let’s go.”

“This is mine.”

Yuri stopped and gaped at Otabek, who was calmly removing two leather jackets from a bag on the motorcycle and putting one on. He picked up the second and held it out to Yuri, “This is an old one of mine. It might be a little short in the arms but it should fit okay otherwise.” He seemed to hesitate for a second, taking in Yuri who was still staring at him in open mouthed disbelief instead of grabbing the jacket and trying to hurry Otabek along. “This is okay, right?”

Yuri snapped himself out of it and jumped forward to snatch the jacket before Otabek could take it back. “Oh hell yes.”

◈

Yuri was sprawled out on the ground, letting the sun warm his skin. Otabek, fucking sap that he had proven to be, had taken him out to the nearby nature preserve for a picnic. He’d bundled Yuri up in his old jacket, carefully helped secure his helmet, and then taken him screaming down the back roads at more than twice the speed limit.

Yuri had stuffed himself on the sandwiches and beer Otabek had packed, and somehow had ended up with his head in the other man’s lap. Otabek had fed him bites of fruits and cookies, and taken to running his fingers through Yuri’s hair when he was done. Otabek was quiet by nature, but between bites of food he’d told Yuri a bit about himself, and they’d discovered they were both completing a double major in Psychology and a second subject. Otabek was going into his senior year of his Criminal Justice/Psych degree and aiming for a career working in victim advocacys. Yuri was heading into his sophomore year studying Biology as well as Psychology and wanted to end up in sports therapy. 

The sun on his skin, his full belly, and the hand in his hair was combining to make Yuri peaceful and drowsy. Otabek shifted beneath him, and he saw the other man check his phone and sigh. “Yuri,” he murmured, “Yuri, I have to work tonight. I probably need to get you home.”

Yuri groaned and pushed his head further into Otabek’s hand, not ready to get up. Otabek chuckled and ran his thumb over Yuri’s cheek. Yuri turned into it and nipped at the pad of Otabek’s thumb. Otabek drew in a harsh breath, and Yuri smirked to himself before gracefully rolling over and raising himself up to kneel in front of Otabek.

“I had a good time, Otabek. A _really_ good time.” Otabek nodded slightly, his eyes glued to Yuri’s face. Yuri leaned in just shy of letting his lips brush against Otabek’s. Otabek shivered slightly but took the hint, shifting forward just enough to press his lips to Yuri’s. Yuri sighed happily and tried to move forward to deepen the kiss as he let his hands run down Otabek’s chest towards the button of his jeans. He was stopped by Otabek putting a firm hand to the middle of his chest and leaning back, a frown on his face. 

“Yuri...this isn’t what I brought you out here for.”

“Of course it isn’t.” Yuri deadpanned and fought the urge to roll his eyes. They’d literally hooked up within fifteen minutes of meeting. Who was Otabek trying to fool by pretending he hadn’t been hoping for more of the same. He tried to lean forward once more, and Otabek promptly scooted himself back and stood up.

“I really do have to work tonight Yuri. Let me take you home.”

Otabek made quick work of packing up their food, and started walking toward the bike. Yuri followed along behind him, clutching the borrowed jacket and wondering how in the hell he’d managed to fuck this up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I hope this was worth the wait. I'd love it if you commented telling me what you think, or feel free to hit me up on tumblr as well.


	6. six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leo and Guang Hong meet again, and start putting together the mystery of their friends failed relationship.

Leo swerved to avoid running over a woman who barreled out of the organic vitamins and essential oils trap masquerading as a store, flipping her off absently mindedly when she shrieked at him. He was meeting Guang Hong to work on their volunteer project again, and he wanted to be early this time. He had put a little more effort into his appearance and was wearing some of his nicer jeans along with a green long sleeved shirt under his jacket. His hair was still covered by his favorite beanie but he had taken the time to brush it and run some product through it so he wouldn’t have atrocious hat hair when he removed it. It was amazing how smooth his mornings went when he wasn’t babysitting a drunken roommate. 

Otabek was still refusing to speak about the blonde from the party, and had spent most of the past week locked up in his room. He had refused to take any of his bowls or his other bong back, and would not smoke or drink with anyone else present. Leo couldn’t say for sure what he did alone in his room, but he had the feeling he was abstaining in there as well. Since getting Otabek high was Leo’s main way of initiating a heartfelt conversation with him, Leo hadn’t had any luck getting Otabek to open up. He and JJ had taken turns sitting in the apartment, trying to make sure Otabek wasn’t alone, but they were both exhausted with the task. He was hoping a change in scenery would give him some inspiration for helping out his friend. If nothing else, he’d run the situation past Guang Hong. He was a psychology major planning on going into child counseling, and Otabek was certainly acting like a child lately. This would be good practice for him. 

Leo made it to the cafe about ten minutes early, and took a moment to remove his beanie and shove it in his pocket, and using his reflection in the window to smooth out his hair. When he was satisfied he flipped his skateboard up once more, and tucked it under his arm to walk inside. He glanced around looking for Guang Hong, who had said he might be there visiting his friend who worked at the cafe. 

He finally saw Guang Hong sitting at a table near the front counter, and he took a minute to admire him. Guang Hong was dressed cozily, in a thick sweater, and he had single dimple that flashed when he smiled. Leo still wanted to screw his brains out, but he also wanted to cuddle him for hours afterwards. Possibly on a bear skin rug in front of a fireplace. Did he know anyone with anything like that? JJ’s family had some kind of cabin, he should ask him. Hopefully JJ and Bella hadn’t used it for the exact same thing, he didn’t think he could get an erection with that mental image in the back of his mind. Leo put a stop on that confusing train of thought and hoped he’d remember to look into it later and he slowly approached the table, not wanting to interrupt Guang Hong’s chat without warning. 

Guang Hong spotted him when he was just a few feet away and he smiled openly at him, that one dimple flashing while he waved enthusiastically. “Hi Leo! I’m sorry, I wanted to get your drink but I was worried it would get cold, but now you’re here and it’s my turn to buy...”

The tall figure next to Guang Hong that Leo had been ignoring until this point let out a very loud and unsubtle ‘chill’ that was barely disguised as a cough, while also reaching out to quickly squeeze his shoulder. Guang Hong flushed and trailed off before regaining his composure, and shooting a bashful grin at his friend. “I’m sorry I’m babbling. Leo, this is my friend Yuri who works here. Yuri, this is Leo my partner for the mentoring project. Guang Hong waved his hand between the two, and Leo shot him a brief smile before turning to greet the other man. 

It took him a minute to put it together. The large green eyes and delicate features were familiar in a way he couldn’t quite place. Judging by the slight widening of Yuri’s eyes and the quick panicked glance he shot in Guang Hong’s direction, Yuri also recognized him from somewhere, although Yuri seemed to actually know where from. Leo shrugged internally, he knew it would come to him eventually. Instead he offered his hand, determined to make a good impression on any friend of Guang Hong’s.

“Hi Yuri it’s good to meet you.” Yuri shot his hand a look of disbelief before looking back to Guang Hong who was too busy beaming at Leo to notice his friend’s discomfort. Yuri looked back at Leo, and seemed to realize the other man didn’t know exactly he was, and Leo saw some of the tension drain from his shoulders. Yuri tugged the hood of his black sweatshirt more securely over his hair before he finally stretched out his hand to grasp Leo’s. 

“Hey Leo. From what Ji here tells me you’re shaping up to be a better partner than the fuckhead he had to deal with last year.” Yuri shot a sharp grin to Guang Hong over the indignant gasp he earned, and Leo couldn’t help but chuckle as well. Guang Hong was just too sweet looking, but there was a spark in his eye that promised retribution as Yuri continued to gently heckle him. Leo was positive that spark had the potential to make him a monster in bed given the right prompting. 

“Oh hey Yuri that reminds me. Leo said his roommate loves this place. I figured if he was a regular you might know him. Leo, what was his name again?”

Yuri tensed up next to Guang Hong, which didn’t seem like a reasonable reaction given the casual nature of the question. The slight twitch as he reacted caused a lock of blonde hair to swing free and Yuri hastily pushed it back under his hood. 

Oh. _OHHHH._ Leo recognized him now. It was the blonde hair that finally put it together. This was the blonde from the party. Otabek’s blonde. With that information in place he appraised Yuri again. He would be just Otabek’s type, all long legs, and the golden hair that Otabek was such a sucker for. Yuri had tensed, and Leo knew that Yuri was ready to run. Leo couldn’t have that. He couldn’t figure out what happened with Otabek if Yuri ran. 

Leo realized that Guang Hong was still waiting for an answer, and he put a sloppy grin on his face before speaking, “Oh yeah Otabek! He loves this place, he makes me and our other friend JJ come here all the time. He’s a bit taller than me, dark hair, doesn’t speak much, shit tipper?”

Leo was watching Yuri, and the other’s head was shaking in denial before Leo had even finished. “No, I know who you mean and he always tips really well.” There was something torn in Yuri’s eyes, but he looked to Guang Hong and he was closing off again. Guang Hong was smiling, but there was something contemplative in his expression and Leo was betting he could read the conflict in Yuri’s expression as well as he could. 

“Well I’m glad he’s a good tipper! I’d hate to think you had bad taste in friends Leo.” Guang Hong shot another beaming smile Leo’s way, effectively breaking the weird tension, before checking his phone. “Hey Yuri, you’re going to be late for your lunch if you don’t hurry. Did you even grab your food yet?”

Yuri glanced at his own phone and swore softly before shoving his phone back in his pocket. “Thanks for reminding me Ji. I’m out. Nice meeting you Leo.” Yuri shot a quick nod his way before heading for the counter where he grabbed a bag of food and a to go cup of coffee before heading for the door.

“Say hello to Nikolai for me!” Guang Hong yelled after him, and Yuri gave a distracted wave in acknowledgement as he backed out the door. Guang Hong waited a minute to make sure Yuri was gone, before turning and fixing Leo with a focused stare, “So you want to fill me in on whatever I was missing during that conversation, or am I beating it out of Yuri later?”

“Yeah, I’ll fill you in. But afterwards I want you to help me fix it.” Guang Hong gave a half nod, and Leo took the opportunity to hook his arm through Guang Hong’s elbow. “C’mon let’s order our food and get out of here. I don’t think Yuri would appreciate us discussing his love life in front of all his coworkers.”

◈

“So it’s like this,” Leo started as they walked back towards his apartment, “I don’t actually know a lot. I was out of town for the summer visiting my family. When I came back Beks was a little off, but I figured he was just worked up over the school year. It’s senior year, and I think his family was giving him some shit about his major.”

Guang Hong nodded, taking a sip of his latte while Leo walked next to him. Guang Hong had been gracious enough to carry the food Leo had ordered for himself and Otabek, even insisting on paying despite Leo trying to fight him on feeding Otabek as well. Leo’s own hands were occupied with the coffee carrier and his skateboard or he’d at least have demanded to carry the bag. 

“So when did you realize it wasn’t just school and his family?”

“I’d suspected a while ago, but I didn’t know for sure until last weekend. Otabek parties, but he’s responsible about it. He was off this year, smoking a lot more than he normally did. Then last weekend we’re at a party and I see him talking with some little blonde who literally runs away from him, and he spends the rest of the night trying to drown himself in vodka. We get home and he tries to flush all of his wee-,er I mean tobacco.” and now Guang Hong is snorting and rolling his eyes at him but Leo soldiers on. “Eventually he tells us he had a thing with the blonde we saw him with-”

“You think it’s Yuri don’t you?” Guang Hong asks him, not even apologetic about cutting him off.

“I didn’t recognize him at first but I’m positive. I mean you saw how he reacted. Do you think I’m wrong?” Leo makes a vague gesture back towards the cafe with the hand holding the drink carrier, and Guang Hong frowns in contemplation. 

“No, I think you’re right.” he eventually lets out slowly, “And it would match up with what I know about this summer. But you finish first, tell me about the aftermath of the party, and I’ll see if it matches what I know.”

“There’s not much more to it after that. Otabek said whatever went bad was his fault, and he’s been holed up in his room ever since. I was actually going to ask for your advice on what to do, because he’s been acting like a giant child all week.”

Guang Hong smirked briefly, but stayed silent. Leo waited, seeing that the other was focused on what he had learned, and assimilating it to his own knowledge. The sun was weak but it was shining, and the wind was minimal. It was actually nice for this time of year, and Leo was content to be walking with Guang Hong. Finally, Guang Hong let out a small sigh and looked back towards Leo, the slightest bit of worry furrowing his brow. 

“I was visiting family for a lot of the summer too,” he started slowly, “so I only was here for the aftermath of the break up, as it were. I can tell you that’s not all that was going on for Yuri, but the rest is his personal business and I won’t share that.” The look Guang Hong fixed him with was unexpectedly fierce, and he waited for Leo to nod his agreement before he continued. “I missed all of the actual relationship. All I know about that I learned from Yuri’s roommate, Mila. Yuri isn’t exactly big on sharing.” Guang Hong’s mouth twisted wryly for a second, before he continued on again. “I know there was a relationship. I know Yuri had some concerns about _tobacco_ use, but he probably could have put that aside. There was some kind of big fight that neither Mila or I ever got the full details on, probably because it happened at the exact same time as his personal business, and that was far more pressing. Yuri spent a lot of time doing pretty much what Otabek is doing now, only Yuri chose to sulk on his living room couch because he didn’t actually want to be alone. And that’s it.”

Guang Hong remained quiet for the next few blocks, giving Leo the same time to process that Leo had given him. It seemed to make sense, but they still didn’t know enough. There had to be a way to get more information from their friends, but Leo couldn’t see it. It seemed as though they were both stubborn and determined to stay quiet on what happened between them. They were outside his apartment building, when Guang Hong finally broke the silence. 

“Leo, when we get inside I’m going to try and find a way to say I know Yuri. I want to see what Otabek does. We’re going to have to provoke a reaction to learn anything, and I get the impression Otabek is a lot more level headed than Yuri.”

They made it in the building, and Leo held up a finger for Guang Hong to pause at the entrance to his apartment while he cracked the door. “Beks! I got company dude, you decent?”

“Mentally it’s questionable, but I have pants on!” Guang Hong snorted in suppressed laughter beside him, his eyes wide in disbelief and Leo just shook his head. He didn’t know why Otabek hated pants so much, but he had learned fast after moving in with him to holler out a warning if he had company. 

Leo opened the door and waved Guang Hong ahead while he sat his skateboard down by the doorway. He took the bag of food from the other man and led him to the living room where Otabek was indeed wearing pants, but nothing else. He had surrounded himself with a pile of textbooks and notes, and there was music playing from his laptop on the end table. His sweatpants were slipping so low on his hips that Leo could see the beginning of a thatch of pubic hair and he groaned loudly as he threw a wrapped sandwich at his roommate.

“What the fuck is your problem with clothing Beks? Honestly, a fucking shirt or some boxers please, your dick is about to fall out.”

“For as gay as you are, you really hate my dick.” Otabek shot back without even looking up from the passage he was highlighting. Guang Hong giggled behind him, and that caught Otabek’s attention as he glanced up to find the source of the unfamiliar sound. 

“Otabek, Guang Hong. Guang Hong, Otabek.” Leo said, waving his hand back and forth between the two. “Cafe was too packed to get any work done, so we grabbed some food and came back here. By the way you owe Guang Hong money for your food Beks.”

“Oh don’t worry about it.” Guang Hong said brightly, passing a drink over to Otabek before settling into the oversized papasan in the corner. “My friend Yuri was working, so he got me a discount.”

Otabek froze, and his hand twitched around his tea. Leo was grateful he had the control to stop before he smashed it. “I’m sorry, who was your friend?”

Guang Hong shot another guileless smile to Otabek, but Leo caught the flicker of calculation in his eyes. “Oh Yuri? Leo said you like it there, you’ve probably seen him. He’s kinda skinny, blonde, real nasty attitude to cover up what a big softy he is?”

Otabek shuddered slightly, and quickly folded up his books and laptop. He made a haphazard stack of it all and bundled it into his arms. “Yeah that could be familiar. Hey, I don’t mean to be rude but I really need to study and I won’t be able to focus with company around. It was nice meeting you Guang Hong.”

Guang Hong opened his mouth to respond, but Otabek had already retreated to his room, and Leo heard the click of the lock behind him. He shot a look at Guang Hong, but the other was still staring after Otabek, a thoughtful look on his face. Finally, he looked back to Leo. 

“Your other friend, JJ right? Call him. I’m calling Mila. There’s no way we can figure this out without some help.”


	7. seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flashback chapter, directly after the first date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to the wonderful and talented [thoughtsappear](http://archiveofourown.org/users/thoughtsappear/pseuds/thoughtsappear/) for betaing this particular disaster for me. She really is lovely and you should all check out her writing.

Chapter 7  
The walk back to the motorcycle was beyond awkward. Otabek had turned out to be naturally quiet when he wasn't drinking, and Yuri wasn't in the mood to talk. He wrapped his arms around himself and dragged his feet behind Otabek. Yuri thought he knew what he was in for. His dating life tended to revolve around quick hookups, people who thought he was pretty to look at and disappeared once they realized how angry and bitter he really was. He’d expected the same from Otabek, especially given the blowjob minutes after they first met.

Except, Otabek hadn’t finished from the blowjob. He’d stopped Yuri and jacked them both off together. So maybe he hadn’t liked it, but then what the hell had he invited Yuri out for in the first place? Yuri quietly panicked for a moment wondering if Otabek was a serial killer. This was a pretty remote area. 

“You know my roommate knows where I am and who I’m with.”

“Okay?” Otabek gave him a strange look over his shoulder, and slowed so he was level with Yuri. Yuri wrapped himself up tighter and kept his eyes averted. Hopefully that was enough to keep him from getting murdered out in the woods. 

They finally made it back to the motorcycle, and Otabek strapped the bag with their food down, before grabbing the two leather jackets again. He held up the one Yuri had worn before, but Yuri didn’t reach for it. He was feeling pretty dumb now that he realized he wasn’t getting murdered, and mad at himself for acting like an idiot and even being excited about this in the first place. 

“Hey.” Otabek came forward and slid the jacket around Yuri’s shoulders. Yuri still refused to unwrap his arms from around himself, and he was glaring at his feet. Maybe he could talk Mila into coming to pick him up. Otabek waited a moment more, before he slid a little closer to Yuri and gently swept some bangs out of his face. “What did I do?”

Of all the things Otabek could have said, that was probably the only one that could have gotten through to Yuri. He jerked his head up in surprise to find Otabek watching him with a blank expression. He had his hands deliberately loose by his sides, and the idea that this was his fault was so absurd that Yuri actually laughed a little.

“No, it’s not you.” Otabek arched one eyebrow at him, and Yuri shook his head forcefully. “It’s really not. This one’s on me. I’m sorry okay. You were really nice to me today and I’m acting like a brat.” Otabek’s tense stance had eased the slightest bit and his expression softened at Yuri’s apology. “I can call my roommate and have her pick me up if you really need to get going.”

At that Otabek released a scoff, and the look on his face shifted to mildly offended. “I’m not going to abandon you out here and make you ask your roommate to come get you. First off, my mother would kill me if she ever found out. Secondly..”

Yuri wondered for a split second what it was like to have a mother who cared enough to worry about your manners, before his impatience got the better of him and he nudged Otabek with his shoulder trying to prompt him to continue.

“Secondly?”

“Well, maybe I just like having you wrapped around me on the bike.” Yuri’s mouth dropped, and he earned a slight smirk and a quick slap on the ass as Otabek turned to retrieve his own jacket. Hmm, maybe he hadn’t fucked up that badly.

◈

Yuri tossed and turned in bed that night. He had opened every window in their apartment, and he’d even bought a small fan to blow directly on his bed, but none of it was helping. He had stripped down to his underwear and kicked all the blankets off his bed, but he still felt like he could die of heat stroke at any moment. Mila had already left by the time he got home, leaving a note on the fridge that she had gone drinking with a friend and was probably staying with them for the night.

Yuri had briefly considered looking for a place to stay, but Guang Hong was out of town and he already lived with Mila so there was no one left that he felt comfortable imposing on. The heat was so unbearable that Otabek had even noticed it at the door when he dropped Yuri off. He’d wrinkled his nose and asked Yuri about it, but had been silent when Yuri explained. There was an awkward goodbye with a chaste kiss before Otabek took off. He was already around the corner when Yuri realized he was still wearing his jacket. 

Yuri rolled over and flipped his pillow to the cool side, when he swore he heard a soft knock at the front door. He stilled, thinking maybe it was just someone for the neighbors, but then he heard a more forceful knock that was definitely at his door. Who the fuck was here at three in the morning? He forced himself out of bed and grabbed the baseball bat he and Mila kept for security before cracking open the door. 

Otabek was standing there on the other side, and he looked like sin. He’d changed into a pair of darker and tighter jeans than he’d had on earlier, and his black t-shirt gripped tightly to the muscles in his torso. His hair was messy like he’d just rolled out of bed. Yuri didn’t move, convinced the heat was making him hallucinate.

“Yuri. Good, you're up.”

Otabek slid right past Yuri into the apartment, making a distasteful face at the heat. Yuri noticed he was carrying a six pack of beer in one hand, and a beaten up toolbox in the other. He managed to wander into the kitchen where he set his supplies on the counter, before grabbing and opening two beers and turning to hand one to Yuri where he finally seemed to notice the other man was in nothing but his underwear.

Otabek froze, his eyes going dark as they greedily took in Yuri’s mostly undressed figure. Yuri squirmed slightly under the attention, and was horrified to find he was getting hard from just the look in Otabek’s eyes. Otabek held out a hand to Yuri and crooked his finger to beckon Yuri closer. Yuri went, putting his own hand in Otabek’s when he was close enough. 

Otabek pulled Yuri to him and twisted them around so he had Yuri trapped against the counter. The edge of it dug into Yuri’s back, but it was hard to be concerned about it when Otabek had his hands on him and that molten look in his eyes. Yuri wrapped both arms around Otabek’s shoulders and pulled him closer. Otabek cupped Yuri’s cheek and tipped his head to brush over Yuri’s lips with his own, but Yuri was not having it. He surged forward to deepen the kiss, and Otabek responded perfectly.

This. This was what Yuri had been looking for during their earlier date. Otabek's hand in his hair, tongue licking into his mouth and his thigh pressed between Yuri’s legs so he could grind down against it. Yuri felt like he was melting into the other man. Actually he just felt like he was melting. It was still too hot in here, and the heat of Otabek's body against his own was not helping. With a groan Yuri pulled himself back from the other man, panting and putting just a couple inches between them. 

“It's too hot.” Yuri tried to explain, and Otabek brightened. 

“That's right! Actually that's why I'm here. Here this is for you.” Yuri found himself with a cold beer in hand while Otabek picked up his toolbox. “Now show me the air conditioner.”

Yuri didn't move. He waited to see if Otabek was joking, but the other man was still staring at him expectantly.

“You know how to fix an air conditioner?” Yuri asked, trying his best to keep the doubt from his voice. 

Otabek shrugged and took a pull of his own beer. “I watched some YouTube videos on my break at work. Doesn't seem too hard.”

Yuri still didn't move. He was desperate for cooler air, but this had disaster written all over it. Otabek took in his expression and set his beer back down, only to pull Yuri back into a swift kiss. “Look, I do all the maintenance on my bike and my dad builds houses for a living. I've been helping him since I was a kid. At least let me take a look. Worst case scenario is your air still doesn't work.” 

Yuri nodded slowly and earned a small pleased grin from Otabek before he led him to the air conditioner installed in the wall of the living room. Otabek quickly settled to the ground and started pulling pieces off, muttering to himself. Yuri was sure he heard him muttering ‘righty tighty, lefty loosey’ which was not particularly encouraging for his future cold air needs. Yuri leaned against the wall and sipped his beer. Otabek had his phone out and appeared to be looking up the specific type of air conditioner, and Yuri took a moment to appreciate the lines of his shoulders and bulge of his biceps as he moved.

“Hey Yuri, can you grab me a…” Otabek trailed off as he looked up at Yuri and shook his head. “Okay, I need you to put on some clothes or I'll never be able to focus.” 

Yuri smirked, elated that he was finally getting the reaction he’d been looking for. He flipped his hair and made sure to put some extra swing in his hips as he sauntered back to his room, feeling Otabek's eyes on him the whole way. 

He scrambled into some gym shorts and an old shirt, and walked back out to the living room. Otabek had removed the cover of the air conditioner and was digging inside of it, and didn't even turn his way. Yuri pouted a bit, but Otabek seemed very focused on what he was doing, his beer forgotten next to him. Yuri put the rest of the beer in the fridge and drank Otabek's after he finished his own so it didn't get too warm. Otabek occasionally asked him to hand him a few different tools, and at one point had him holding a flashlight so he could see better, but for the most part he didn’t speak, instead humming to himself as he worked.

Finally Otabek made a positive sounding sign and pulled his hand from the air conditioner holding a rock. He was pleased with himself and reached for his beer, confused when he saw it missing. Yuri quickly retrieved another one from the fridge and knelt next to him to hand it over and Otabek gulped it down gratefully. 

“So your landlord still needs to come over because I think you need a freon recharge, but I might have patched it for the night. See here?” Yuri leaned forward to where Otabek was pointing and saw electrical tape wrapped around a tube. “You had a leak. I patched it and found this.” he gestured to the rock on the ground. “It was jammed in a fan keeping it from spinning. Not sure how it got there, though. Let me put it back together and with any luck it will work now.” 

Yuri watched as Otabek moved to reassemble the air conditioner, before tossing a quick smirk his way as he turned it back on. There was nothing for a moment then the soft whir of the fan kicked in and Yuri held his hand out to feel the first weak burst of cold air from the machine. 

“Oh my god. You actually did it.” Yuri laughed, feeling delirious at the thought of sleeping in cool air again tonight. He pounced forward on Otabek, hugging him and kissing him enthusiastically in celebration. Otabek returned the kiss easily, one hand tangling in Yuri’s hair before he pulled back. 

“I should get going. I have another long day at my internship tomorrow.” 

Yuri whined and tried to wriggle his way closer to Otabek. “But shouldn’t you stay for a bit to make sure it’s really working? And your jacket is still in my room.”

It must have worked, because Otabek’s eyes softened minutely, and he shifted Yuri more comfortably onto his lap. “Yeah I guess I can stay for a little bit.”

◈

Yuri and Otabek were twined together on his bed lazily kissing. Yuri had managed to wrestle Otabek out of his shirt and he was taking his time running his hands over the defined muscles in his torso. Otabek was making soft pleased sounds as Yuri's hands ran over him, seemingly content to let Yuri do what he wanted. Otabek had one hand idly massaging and grasping at Yuri’s ass, and the other wrapped back up in Yuri’s hair but was making no other moves forward. Yuri was dying. He was already half hard and wanted nothing more than shove the rest of his and Otabek’s clothes off, but he couldn’t quite get the earlier rejection on their date out of his mind. He whimpered against Otabek's mouth, squirming against the other man.

Otabek pulled back slightly from Yuri, but before he could get it in his head this was another rejection Otabek had rolled them over, laying Yuri on his back with Otabek hovering over him. Otabek grasped onto his hips to keep him still and began kissing a meandering path down his neck and his torso down to his naval. He nipped gently at the skin just above the waistband of his shorts and Yuri tried to rock his hips up but was kept in place by Otabek’s grip on him.

“You're so beautiful.” He heard Otabek murmur into the skin of his hip, gently biting and sucking a mark into his hip bone. “Tell me what you want from me Yuri.” 

Yuri squirmed and whined, not sure how to express the desire he was feeling. Normally he was the one in control of these situations, but Otabek had taken over and Yuri was enjoying it more than he expected. Otabek watched him with dark eyes, continuing to kiss and nip at his hipbones while he waited for Yuri to answer. 

“God Otabek please just touch me.” 

Otabek gave him a quick smirk while he encouraged Yuri to lift his hips so he could remove his shorts and underwear. He stood up briefly to shed his own pants, before he crawled back over Yuri. He wrapped his hand around the base of his erection and stroked slowly, watching Yuri’s face for his reaction. Yuri rocked his hips into the touch, but found he didn’t like the feeling of Otabek watching him. He reached up and pulled the other man down to where he could kiss him, and Otabek went willingly. Yuri ended up mostly panting against his mouth as Otabek continued stroking him with slow and deliberate motions. 

Yuri rolled his hips into Otabek’s hand, trying to push him into more speed, more pressure, more anything that would get him off. Otabek was undeterred and kept up his same pace, moving to gently nip at the tender skin below Yuri’s ear. Yuri whined and tried to thrust his hips up once more and Otabek shifted, using one arm across his hip bones to pin him down and keep Yuri in place. 

Yuri cursed at Otabek when he realized he couldn’t move, and decided to change tactics. He reached for the front of Otabek’s briefs, wrapping a hand around his cock and running his thumb over the head. Otabek’s smooth pace on his dick stuttered for a moment, and Yuri cheered himself on internally. He began to match the speed Otabek set, using the same torturously slow pace. Otabek let out a soft groan into his ear and finally he began to speed up, burying his face in Yuri’s shoulder. Yuri slid his hand into Otabek’s briefs to fully get a hand on him and Otabek shuddered against him. It was an embarrassingly short amount of time later that Yuri was crying out and spilling into Otabek’s hand. He would’ve felt worse about it if Otabek hadn’t followed behind him seconds later. 

The orgasm combined with his exhaustion from the heat and day he’d had made Yuri drowsy. He managed a couple lazy kisses to Otabek’s wrist when the other man knelt next to him to clean him off, but he was ready to sleep until he had to work the following evening. He yawned and rolled around, shifting until he was comfortable in his bed. He could hear Otabek moving around the bedroom, and he forced his eyes open to seek out the other man.

“Thank for fixing the air conditioner. I suppose you have to get going now if you have your internship?”

Otabek was cleaning himself off, and he momentarily paused at Yuri’s words, before resuming his actions and pulling his clothes on. He walked over to the bed and adjusted Yuri’s blanket around his shoulders and brushed Yuri’s hair out of his face. Yuri nuzzled contently into the contact, his eyes drifting shut before he forced them back open.

“I’m glad I could help. I’ll call you sometime this weekend, ok?”

Yuri nodded in agreement, and Otabek knelt down to give him a final kiss before grabbing his shoes and heading out to the living room.

“Lock the door behind you please!” Yuri called after him, but if Otabek answered Yuri didn’t hear it. He was fast asleep before Otabek even had his shoes on.


	8. eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuri deals with the fallout of running into Otabek, as well as some bad news from Nikolai's nurse.

Yuri had forgotten exactly how off kilter Otabek Altin could make him. Yuri expected him swinging by the cafe occasionally, even though he still thought it was rude as fuck. He knew there was a chance he’d bump into him on campus, and had prepared himself for that. Running into him, literally, at the party had been the last thing Yuri had expected. Otabek had been there, looking as lost as Yuri felt, with his hand on Yuri’s arm, skin to skin for the first time in months. Yuri had panicked and run, something he never did. He’d spent most of the next day sulking on the couch. He’d called in to work, which he absolutely never did, made himself into a blanket burrito on the couch, and spent the whole day binging A Series of Unfortunate Events on Netflix. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the adaptation, but he liked watching someone whose life was worse off than his own. 

Mila had done her best to comfort him, but he didn’t want her comfort. He wanted an explanation. Otabek had shocked Yuri at every turn while they had whatever it was they had. He’d called when he said he was going to call, had shown up every time Yuri asked and more, and had fucked him better than Yuri could have ever dreamed. Yuri had even started to believe that maybe Mila was right and this was something that could progress beyond their casual hook up situation into actual relationship territory when it all ended. He wanted to know what changed things. He wanted to know how Otabek could look at him like the answer to a prayer after everything that had happened. 

Yuri may have started that final fight, but it was Otabek who had cut off all ties in the end. 

Yuri had put himself back together then, when his insides felt hollowed out and raw. He had only seen Otabek for a few seconds this time. He would put himself back together now. Just not yet. Now he was going to the hidden box in the back of his closet to pull out the leather jacket and the henley that he had borrowed and never given back. He was going to yank the henley over his head and lay the jacket next to his face on the pillow. If he closed his eyes he thought he could still smell the slightest whiff of Otabek’s cologne. He curled up in his comforter and gave himself just tonight to cry, promising himself he’d be over it in the morning. 

Just like Otabek was.

◈

Yuri’s foul mood had not gotten any better by the next day. Viktor had hovered over him Sunday, trying to feed him soup and check his temperature. Yuri didn't even have the energy to snap at him, and endured the attention in silence. All it did was upset Viktor more and convince him that Yuri was probably dying.

Yuri had suffered Viktor’s histrionics through the remainder of his shift, even volunteering to stay late to make up for being gone the day before. Viktor had looked at him with stars in his eyes, which meant he was definitely off to try and woo the florist some more, before smothering him in a hug. 

“You know I love you very much, right Yuratchka?” Yuri snarled half heartedly and shoved Viktor away, but the sentiment was nice he supposed. Viktor reminded him to call if he started feeling sick again at least fifty times before Yuri finally convinced him he would be fine for the next few hours. It was Sunday, and they closed early. He could manage alone until then. 

“Hey old man!” he called after Viktor as he was walking to the door with a box of food in hand, “Wear the blue shirt. I thought flower boy was going to drool on the counter last time he saw it on you.”

It wasn't an ‘I love you’, but Viktor seemed to understand what he meant. He gave Yuri one last smile, before pushing his way out of the cafe and leaving Yuri alone. There were no customers for the moment, so Yuri threw himself into cleaning the place. By the time he was done he was a sweaty, exhausted mess, but the place was shining. 

Monday he overslept and missed his first two classes of the day. He went to dance that night to try and work out some frustration and ending up spraining his ankle. Tuesday he blew a quiz he'd forgotten to study for, and Guang Hong spent lab eyeing him with gentle concern. Wednesday went by in a haze, but at least nothing bad seemed to happen. 

He was finally starting to feel like himself again when Thursday evening rolled around. Mila would not allow his moping to affect her anatomy grade and had kicked his ass all through lab. He even managed a crappy bone pun that was worth it for the smile on her face. 

They were at home, sharing a bottle of wine while Mila danced in the kitchen making supper when Yuri's phone went off. He saw it was the office for his grandpa's home and his heart stopped painfully in his chest. He reached out and fumbled to answer the phone before finally getting it up to his ear 

“Hello, this is Yuri.”

“Mr. Plisetsky, my name is Roberta. I'm a nurse at your grandfather's facility.”

“Is he okay?” Yuri bit out, and somehow Mila was beside him. She gently pulled his hand free from where he was already trying to bite his nails bloody. She kept a grip on his hand, and curled up against his side in a show of support.

“Physically, yes. Mr. Plisetsky…” and here Roberta trailed off as though not sure how to say the next part, and Yuri could have screamed, “Your mother showed up here tonight.”

“Don’t call her that. Her name is Irina.” Yuri was pretty sure he stopped breathing for a moment, but the response to hearing about his mother was instinctive. He froze for a moment, somehow still surprised at what Mama-no, Irina-was capable of but then he erupted. He stood up from the couch and started to pace the living room, his free hand clenched into a fist at his side, “What did she do?”

“She showed up unexpectedly while we were preparing dinner. Things escalated into some kind of argument and she slapped him. He has a scratch on his cheek, but nothing serious. We called the police but she took off before they could get here.” 

“Of course she did.” Yuri muttered, squeezing his eyes shut and rubbing at his forehead against the headache he could feel starting, “Can I speak with him?”

“He's already in bed.” Roberta told him gently, “He was very upset when the police left and wanted to lay down. I was worried he would neglect to mention it to you, so I made sure to call.” 

As upset as Yuri was, the wry tone in Roberta's voice made him grin slightly. It was nice that he wasn't the only one suffering through his grandfather's stubbornness anymore. 

“Thank you very much Roberta. I'll be sure to call him tomorrow.”

He ended the call and turned to see Mila looking at him expectantly from the couch. She patted the cushion next to her, and had swatted the hand away from his mouth before he was even fully seated. He settled against her side and let her play with his hair while he collected himself. 

“Mama showed up at Grandpa's.” He finally said into the silence, then hissed when Mila’s hand clenched in his hair. She combed it back out in apology, but he could feel the tension in her body next to him waiting for the rest of the story, “They had a fight and she hit him. Took off before the police could get there. Typical stuff.”

“I'm sorry Yuri.” Mila murmured into his hair and Yuri scoffed at her. This was going to happen sooner or later, and they both knew it. Really it was a miracle it had taken this long after Yuri had rejected her this summer.

◈

Yuri’s call with his grandfather the next day had been useless. Nikolai refused to talk about his mama, and just insisted he was fine at increasing volumes until Yuri finally screamed and threw down the phone. He’d stomped around the apartment in a rage, and had scrubbed at the stove until it was gleaming, before gritting his teeth and calling back. Neither of them brought up Yuri’s mother again, but they made lunch plans for that weekend. Yuri was hoping to get more out of him in person.

Lilia had told him in no uncertain terms that he was not allowed back at dance with his bad ankle and worse attitude that week, so he found himself texting all his coworkers and volunteering to work again. He couldn't work out his frustrations at the studio, so he'd take them out on the grime coating the panini press. The cafe was smartly situated in the couple of blocks between the university and technical college. The amount of college students also created a thriving downtown district, and every block on this road had at least two bars. Weekends were always busy with college students looking for food at some point during their night of drinking. Yuri was dishing up drinks and food to the masses for hours, and scrubbing the kitchen spotless at the end of every night. By the time he made it home he was exhausted and would immediately fall into a dreamless sleep.

He had Sunday off after working all weekend, and he enjoyed sleeping in for once. Mila had gone home to visit family for the weekend, and he had the place to himself. He luxuriated in his long shower, and even snuck some of Mila’s fancy ass conditioner that made his hair smell like the rain forest. He decided he was too lazy to cook, and ate a frozen waffle straight from the toaster. He didn’t really have time to study, but he set up his notes for after he visited his grandpa. It was nice enough out that he could drive with the windows down, and he pulled behind the cafe to park in employee parking. He’d only be there a few minutes, and he was not trying to find a spot on the street. 

He was surprised to see Guang Hong sitting at a table and waved to his friend, and indicated he’d be over there in a second before he ordered. He waited for his coffee then made his way over to his friend who was looking unusually put together considering his normal weekend schedule consisted of drinking all night and sleeping until at least three. 

“What’s up Ji? Who are you trying to impress today?” Yuri slapped his friend good naturedly on the shoulder as he approached, and Guang Hong glared at him from behind his coffee. 

“I have no idea what you mean. I’m just here to meet my partner for the mentoring project.” Guang Hong sniffed at him as he daintily pulled apart a bagel to smear cream cheese on it. Yuri watched him, and the two managed to keep straight faces for about thirty seconds before bursting into laughter.

Ji Guang Hong was an honor roll student, did charity work in his spare time, and was a blushing, mild mannered young man who helped little old ladies carry their groceries home by the light of day. He was adored by his professors, and grandmothers everywhere. Underneath the public face he put on, Guang Hong was sarcastic and wild and fiercely loyal. A couple of months after meeting in their statistics class the previous year when their friendship was still tentative and new, Yuri had received the first call for help from Guang Hong. Guang Hong had told him he was hiding on the roof of a party that had been busted by the cops, and could Yuri come get him and bring an extra set of clothes please? Yuri had pulled up in an alley a few houses away, when Guang Hong had sauntered up to his car completely naked. Yuri could only stare open mouthed as his friend quickly dressed himself in the sweats and t-shirt Yuri had provided before buckling himself in. 

“Ji Guang Hong, you have blowjob lips!” He finally managed to spit out, and Guang Hong just blinked guilelessly at him.

“Well, yeah, why did you think I needed clothes? Can we hit up Taco Bell? I’m starving.”

Their friendship was cemented in stone ever since. Guang Hong continued to get into ridiculous situations, and Yuri was always his first call to bail him out. On the very rare occasions Yuri wanted to have more than a couple drinks Guang Hong was the person he called, and whenever Yuri’s mouth and temper got him in trouble Guang Hong was always right at his side ready to help him punch his way out. It was different than his relationship with Mila. Mila was his big sister. Guang Hong was his ride or die bitch.

That friendship meant that Yuri knew something good was up for Guang Hong to be out of bed and dressed before noon on a Sunday. Up close he could see slight signs of a hangover, but Guang Hong had masterfully covered them up and was doing his best to look like the sweet, nonthreatening boy most assumed him to be. Yuri knew it was a dirty trick, but he liked watching other people fall for it.

“So this is all for the mentoring project? You must have a better partner than last year.” Last year Guang Hong had ended up bouncing his partner’s head off a brick wall when the guy used the r word about a hard of hearing child in their group. Even better, Guang Hong had convinced the guy and everyone else that he had just tripped and really Guang Hong had saved him by taking him to the hospital. 

“Oh yes. This partner wants to fuck me through a wall and thinks he’s being subtle about it.” Yuri choked a little on his sip of coffee as he laughed, and Guang Hong settled back into his chair with a self satisfied smirk. 

“Poor guy is never going to know what hit ‘em.” Yuri finally managed to get out, his voice raspy from the coffee he’d just burned his throat with.

“That’s the plan,” Guang Hong shot one more smirk his way, before shifting gears and leaning towards Yuri in the manner Yuri had dubbed his therapist pose, “Now why are you up and moving when I know for a fact you volunteered to work the late shift all weekend?”

“You don’t know that Ji. There’s no way.”

“Please. The appliances are all clean. You’re the only one who does that and your hands are all chapped from not wearing gloves while cleaning with abrasive chemicals. Again.” Guang Hong waved his hand dismissively before zeroing back in on Yuri’s face, this time looking like a shark closing in on a kill, “So are you telling me what’s going on or am I calling Mila?”

Yuri shook his head and yanked his hood up over his head before hiding his chapped hands in his front pocket. He didn’t exactly want to tell Guang Hong about his week in the middle of the cafe, but he knew Guang Hong would absolutely drag Mila into it if he didn’t, “Irina showed up at Grandpa’s home and they had to call the cops. I’m taking him lunch.”

Yuri could see the rage in Guang Hong’s face at his explanation. Guang Hong had been at Yuri’s side every step of the way over the summer as he dealt with his mother, and knew the stress it had caused Yuri. Guang Hong also happened to adore Nikolai, and was equally adored in turn. Guang Hong often accompanied Yuri on his visits to Nikolai’s home, and Yuri knew they talked weekly, Nikolai using Guang Hong to keep tabs on Yuri. 

Yuri could tell Guang Hong wanted to talk more on the matter, but at that moment the door opened and Guang Hong quickly shifted into his sweet and innocent mode. Yuri started to snicker and Guang Hong looked at him with a sugar sweet smile and death in his eyes, “Yuri, you better play along or I will _end_ you.”

Yuri snorted and took another sip of his coffee. He was far too experienced at playing along with Guang Hong at this point. He would be able to keep his cool with no issue. At least that’s what he assumed until he turned and recognized the man who had been in this same cafe with Otabek last week. Yuri was tense throughout his introduction to Leo, but at least it seemed as though he didn’t recognize him. Guang Hong knew something was up, even if he didn’t know exactly what, and was doing his very best to distract Leo with big doe eyes and shy smiles. The distraction bought Yuri enough time to get his act together, but he started looking for a way out. 

Of fucking course Guang Hong asked Leo about his friend who liked the cafe. Yuri could see it in Leo’s face, the moment he connected the dots between Yuri and Otabek. He should’ve let it lie, but he corrected Leo’s remark about Otabek being a bad tipper. Otabek had been a lot of things, but he still wanted others to think the best of him.

Guang Hong gave him an exit, and he took it, rushing to grab his food and out to his car. He took a deep inhale of the crisp fall air and forced himself to walk to the parking lot. Seeing Leo, hearing Otabek’s name, it made all the nasty things he’d been feeling come back full force. He shoved it all deep down once more. His first priority was seeing Nikolai and making sure he was okay. Everything else would have to wait.

◈

Yuri had barely made it to the main road before his phone was buzzing in his pocket. He wasn’t able to grab it until he made it to a stop light a few blocks later, and by then he already had a good collection of messages from Guang Hong. He groaned when he saw that Guang Hong had been sending them to their group chat with Mila, and now she was invested as well.

Ji (11:45): _hes taking me to his house. im gonna punch otabitch in the dick_  
Ji (11:45): _from what yuri said itll be hard to miss_  
Mila (11:47): _???_  
Ji (11: 50): [picture of cat] _YURI LOOK HOW CUTE_  
Ji (11:53): _this bitch trying to act like i cant figure out tobacco is code for weed PLZ_  
Mila (11:56): _G, what the fuck you on about?_  
Mila (11:56): _I am at brunch with grandparents and they are giving me the stink eye cuz my phone keeps buzzing_  
Ji (11:56): _tell them its your vibrator_  
Ji (11:56): _anyhows my mentor partner is totally otabitch’s roommate, and he is going to tell me everything_  
Ji (11:58): _okay he actually knows like nothing cuz he was out of time all summer_  
Mila (11:59): _OMG G TELL ME EVERYTHING_  
Yuri (12:03): _oh my god you guys i’m walking into grandpa’s_  
Yuri (12:03): _DO NOT PUNCH ANYONE_

Yuri muted his phone and shoved it back into his pocket. There was a disaster brewing in the form of his so called best friends, but he could only deal with one at a time. Right now he still had to focus on Nikolai. He walked in the front door, fully prepared to wave at the front desk staff and move on until he saw Roberta standing there filling out some paperwork. He changed trajectory and planned on waiting for a pause in the conversation to approach her, but she must have been watching for him because she was already closing up her paperwork and moving to meet him.

“Hello, Mr. Plisetsky. I was hoping I would catch you on your way in.” Now that he isn’t panicking, he remembers Roberta clearly. Her dark hair is cut short, and she always wears a locket with a picture of her children inside of it. Yuri liked her because she never let his Nikolai get away with anything he wasn’t supposed to be doing. Nikolai liked her because she brought in homemade cookies and cards from her children on everyone’s birthday and holidays, making sure no one was ever forgotten about. 

“You knew I’d be here?” he questions, even though the answer is obvious, and Roberta just laughs at him as she swipes her badge to buzz them through the security doors into the main lobby. The home is really more of a big apartment complex, with the first floor occupied by all the amenities for the residents. Each floor also had a communal dining room and lounge with a TV for the residents to visit their neighbors. Nikolai was pretty self sufficient for the most part, but he liked having the option of someone else cooking for him when his back was acting up, and he’d grumpily admitted to Yuri that the pool and hot tub were nice as well. Yuri had his own badge to get through building security, but most visitors had to check in with the front desk then get buzzed in through the secure doors. 

“Your visit is all he’s talked about. Granted, you are most of what he talks about. He’s always so proud to tell everyone about his grandson, working and getting himself an education,” Roberta shot a small smile his way as he flushed and looked at his feet, “but I think you already knew that. I just wanted to touch base with you on the situation with Irina.”

Yuri appreciates that Roberta remembers to use her name this time. They pause as the elevator opens and a family exits, before they enter it themselves and Roberta hits the button for Nikolai’s floor, “She hasn’t come back?”

“No,” Roberta shakes her head firmly, “and all the staff know to call the police if she does. We can’t guarantee she’s not trying to call him, but he didn’t seem particularly interested in talking with her.”

“How did she get in?” and this is the part that has been bothering Yuri the most, “I thought she was blacklisted here?”

“She is,” Roberta assures him, “she just got lucky enough to sneak past the receptionist and trick a new janitor into buzzing her in. We got some decent photos of her off the security footage, so it’s been posted in the break rooms and everyone reminded that only the front desk should be buzzing people in.”

The elevator dings as it opens to Nikolai’s floor, and Yuri moves to exit, pausing when Roberta doesn’t follow. She waves him on and greets another nurse stepping in to the elevator and Yuri realizes she must need to get back to work. He waves as the elevator closes before making his way to Nikolai’s apartment. He knocks once to announce his presence before letting himself in. 

“Gramps! I have your favorite tuna melt sandwich!” he calls out, wondering where the other man is. He bends down to scoop up Potya before she escapes out the door, burying his face in soft fur for a moment, “You’re getting fat baby. Grandpa is spoiling you.”

“Yuratchka, I’m in the living room!” he hears Nikolai call, and he sets the cat down to head into the living room from the kitchen. Potya follows purring at his heels. Maybe she missed him, but most likely she smells his grandpa’s sandwich. She was technically Yuri’s cat, but he hadn’t been able to take her to the dorms with him when he started college. She was happy with Nikolai, and Yuri liked that his grandpa had some company when he wasn’t around. He rounds the corner and sees Nikolai sitting on the couch with the heating pad. Must be a bad day for his back. 

Yuri sets down the food on the table, and leans in to give Nikolai a hug, being careful not to jostle him. Nikolai squeezes him back, and Yuri moves back slightly to look at the scratch across his cheek. It was bigger than he’d thought, running from under Nikolai’s left eye almost to the corner of his mouth. It’s scabbed over now, and looks to be healing fine, but Yuri still sees red at the sight. 

“Yuratchka.” Nikolai knows where Yuri’s head is at, and he squeezes Yuri’s upper arm to get his attention, “I am fine. It is over. I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

Yuri grumbles under his breath, but not talking about it right now almost certainly means they’ll be discussing it later so Yuri drops his hands and works on getting their lunch together. He assembles the TV tray that sits in front of Nikolai so he doesn’t have to move too much to get his food, and places his sandwich and sides on the tray. There is fresh coffee in the kitchen, so Yuri assembles a couple mugs for both of them and takes them to the living room with him. Once Nikolai is settled he unpacks his own lunch and begins to eat. 

They make the usual small talk through lunch, checking in on each other’s lives, while Potya does her best to sneak their food from the trays. Yuri scolds Nikolai when he feeds her, and Nikolai ignores him and gives Potya another piece of tuna from his sandwich. Finally they settle back with full stomachs, and Yuri can tell by the sigh and set of his shoulders that Nikolai is finally ready to talk about Irina. 

“What happened Grandpa?” he doesn’t need to say more. Nikolai knows what he means. 

“There’s not much to tell Yuratchka. I had the door unlocked because I was waiting for Mrs. Ivanova down the hall to stop by for lunch. She just walked in. I told her to leave and she slapped me. Luckily, that’s when Mrs. Ivanova finally did show up, and screamed for a nurse. Front desk called the police and Irina took off before they got here, but you knew that.”

“What did she want Grandpa? How did she even know you were here?” Nikolai sighs, and stretches his arm out so Yuri can curl into his side like he’s done ever since he was a child. It’s trickier now, when Yuri is as tall as Nikolai, but Yuri scrunches himself into a ball and makes it work. 

“I don’t know how she found me Yuratchka, but she wanted money. What else does she ever want?”

There’s a pause where they both consider the situation, and Yuri curls deeper into Nikolai’s side. It’s rare he allowed this level of coddling, but this was an old hurt, and it always shook Yuri more than he wanted to admit when it came back up. Nikolai has more to say, and Yuri waits, knowing his grandfather won’t speak before he is ready. Finally Nikolai exhales hugely, and wraps his arm tighter around Yuri like he’s trying to make sure he can’t run away from the words he’s about to say, “She said she tried to see you this summer Yuratchka.”

Yuri winces and fulfills his grandpa’s prediction by trying to squirm away, but Nikolai’s arm around his shoulders is solid, and he’s not going anywhere. He huffs and grumbles to himself as he shifts himself around, but Nikolai waits him out until finally Yuri is ready to speak, “Yeah. She showed up. She asked for money from me too.”

Nikolai’s arm around him tightens, and Yuri can tell he’s angry by the tension in his frame, “Why didn’t you tell me about this sooner Yuratchka?” Yuri resumes his discomfited squirming, but Nikolai is old not fragile, and his grip around him is like wrestling a stone. Yuri gives up when Potya hops onto the couch and makes herself a seat on his lap, staring him down like she too is waiting for his answer.

“There was a lot going on Grandpa. You had just fallen on the stairs and hurt your back again. I didn’t want to worry you.”

“When I fell on the stairs...you told me you had just had a bad fight with the boy who fixed your air conditioning. I thought that’s why you were upset.” Nikolai’s words are slow and thoughtful and Yuri tenses at the mention of Otabek. He’d forgotten he’d told his grandfather about that, desperate to keep him from finding out about Irina’s reappearance, “I am sorry you dealt with all of that at once Yuratchka. But you need to listen to me now.” Nikolai’s iron grip on him is released and he pushes Yuri upright so he can look him in the eye, “No matter how big you think you are now, I am still responsible for you. You should have told me when your mother showed up. I would have been able to help, and I would have been better prepared for her to show up here.”

Yuri drops his eyes, suddenly guilty because he’d never even considered preparing Nikolai for the chance that Irina would come back, “I’m sorry Grandpa. I should have warned you.” He can feel himself start to tear up and he hates it, but Nikolai embraces him and rubs his back, making shushing noises while he lets Yuri compose himself. 

“It’s not your fault Yuratchka. You were trying to protect an old man, you just didn’t consider all of your options.” He waits until Yuri’s breathing has leveled out, and he pulls the blanket from the back of the couch over them, changing the channel to a football game, “Now let’s see how badly this game goes with half our defensive line missing. I have a dinner bet with Sasha from upstairs over it.”

◈

Yuri left Nikolai’s almost four hours later. Nikolai’s team had won the game, which he was very smug about. Nikolai’s back was feeling a little better, and he’d walked Yuri to the elevator and given him one last hard embrace, reminding him to say hello to Mila and Guang Hong for him. He opened his phone and was surprised to see there were no more messages from his friends. He didn’t know what it meant, but probably nothing good.

He was already contemplating what was left in the fridge that he could eat when he pulled up to his apartment building. He saw Mila’s car which meant she was home, and had probably brought a ton of leftovers from her parents. Mila’s mother and grandmother showed their love through feeding their family, and they always sent enough food to last Mila and Yuri for a week.

He unlocked the apartment door, and was surprised to see both of his friends sitting in the living room with tense looks on their faces. He slowed, not sure what had them on edge, but he had the feeling he wasn’t going to like it.

“Yuratchka,” Mila started, and now he knew it was bad from the sad tone of her voice, “don’t be mad.” He didn’t say anything, but stopped in the entry to the living room and leaned against the wall. He wasn’t sure he wanted to sit on the couch with them if they thought he’d be mad. His friends threw a nervous look at each other, and then Guang Hong started in.

“I went to Leo’s apartment today remember? I met Otabek, and Leo told me everything he knew about this summer, and it just didn’t match up to what you had said happened Yuri. So Mila and I,” and here he gestures between the two of them, “went over to this apartment with Leo to meet Otabek’s other friend JJ and his girl.”

Yuri’s face must show his confusion, because Mila steps in and she’s starting to cry, “Yuri, Otabek never wanted to end things. He thinks you did, and I think it’s my fault.”


	9. nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flashback chapter, some of the good bits from the summer, and some not so good bits, and lots of smut.

Chapter 9

“More.”

Yuri felt more than heard Otabek's chuckle against the back of his neck as he added a third finger to the ones already inside of Yuri. Yuri’s arms collapsed under him, and he groaned loudly into the mattress. Yuri rolled his hips back into Otabek desperately, trying to generate just a little bit more friction, anything that would push him over the edge into orgasm. Otabek made a soothing sound into his ear, mouthing gently at the lobe as he free hand ran down Yuri’s side before his arm wrapped around Yuri’s waist to keep him still. Yuri whined and squirmed harder, but Otabek’s arm around him was like iron and he couldn’t move. 

Otabek scissored his fingers and pressed against Yuri’s prostate, and Yuri shuddered and practically sobbed beneath him. Otabek still had him in that vice like grip, and Yuri was helpless to do anything but take what Otabek was giving him. He bucked his hips back again, looking for any bit of leverage and Otabek nipped sharply at the back of his neck. Otabek stilled for a split second at the moan Yuri gave in response before his arm tightened around Yuri once more while he gave another experimental nip to the sensitive skin of Yuri’s neck. Yuri let out a drawn out string of curses while he clamped around Otabek’s fingers. He could feel Otabek’s smirk against his skin as he used this new knowledge to his benefit, biting and sucking at the skin he could reach while Yuri grew more and more frantic beneath him.

“What do you want baby?” he murmured while he nibbled the shell of Yuri’s ear, punctuating the question with another thrust of his fingers past Yuri’s prostate. Yuri gasped and pressed against him, but he hardly needed to think about his answer.

“Fuck me.”

Otabek stilled completely, and Yuri hissed in displeasure and tried to thrust his hips back to make Otabek start moving again. Otabek did the opposite, removing his fingers completely, trailing kisses down his back as he released the grip he had on Yuri. Yuri whined, trying to squirm closer to Otabek, but instead Otabek crawled to sit in front of Yuri and pushed him upright so he could look him in the eyes. Yuri kept trying to move himself closer, but Otabek kept a firm grip on his shoulders until finally with a huff he sat back and crossed his arms. 

This happened every time. They had been hooking up like this for a month, and Yuri still couldn’t get Otabek to fuck him. Any time he suggested it Otabek froze, pushed him back, and the night normally ended with a sad blowjob (In all fairness, it was only Yuri that was sad. The blowjobs were fantastic, just not what he really wanted.) Yuri was over at Otabek’s apartment at least twice a week, sometimes even spending the whole night because he was just too blissed out to move. Otabek took him for long motorcycle rides that almost always resulted in Yuri blowing him in a gas station restroom or once memorably on the side of the highway. Otabek fed him, cleaned him up after they messed around, and listened to him bitch about work with no complaints, but he would not put his dick in Yuri’s ass. Maybe Yuri was going about this the wrong way.

“Do you want me to fuck you instead?” he asked, and Otabek choked on the water he was drinking. Yuri moved in and rubbed his back while he coughed. As soon as the other man had caught his breath Yuri straddled him and wrapped his arms around his neck. Otabek shot him an exasperated look that quickly shifted as soon as Yuri started grinding in small, soft, motions against him. 

“Yuri,” Otabek groaned out, his head dropping to Yuri’s shoulder, “I can’t think when you do this.”

“So don’t think,” Yuri whispered back, moving his hips more insistently and shuddering at the feel of Otabek’s erection sliding against his own, “I’ve been dreaming about your dick in my ass for a month now. What’s stopping you?” Otabek’s fingers dug into Yuri’s hips, and Yuri whimpered and ground down a little harder. Otabek’s face was contorted as he tried to keep his train of thought, but Yuri could tell he was wearing him down. 

“I don’t want,” Otabek started, pausing at an espeically good twist of Yuri’s hips, “I don’t want to hurt you.” Yuri paused at this and Otabek took advantage, getting a better grip on his hips to still him for a moment, “The last person I was with, it didn’t go so well. I guess I was a little bigger than they were really prepared for?”

Yuri couldn’t help it. He started to laugh at the adorably embarrassed look on Otabek’s face. He moved in and kissed the red tinged spots of his cheek, before pulling Otabek into a quick kiss that quickly devolved into something filthy as Yuri resumed grinding down on Otabek. 

“Okay, your dick is kind of huge so I can see why you’re concerned,” Yuri conceded, wrapping himself more securely around Otabek in case he used that as an excuse to toss Yuri off his lap, “but believe me i’m prepared.” Otabek did not look convinced and Yuri dropped another kiss on his lips to keep him from interrupting before he continued, “The first night you sent me home without fucking me I went to the adult toy store on Main and bought the biggest dildo they had and fucked myself with that instead.”

Otabek wasn’t trying to interrupt anymore. Yuri wasn’t even sure he was breathing. His eyes were dark, the pupils blown out as he stared into Yuri’s face. Yuri preened under his reaction and started rutting against him with more purpose. Otabek’s hand slid over to his ass, massaging the muscle idly, one finger sliding down to run over his hole. Yuri shuddered at the sensation, then forced himself to continue talking.

“The dildo I got still wasn’t as big as you, and after a couple days it just wasn’t enough anymore. So the next time I went to visit my grandpa I stopped at the big store on the highway. The clerk was so pissed because I spent so long comparing all the toys until I found the one that reminded me the most of you. And then, every single time you wouldn’t fuck me, I’d just go home and use that instead and pretend it was you.”

Otabek groaned and dropped his head back into Yuri’s shoulder to mouth at his neck. He had two fingers rubbing over Yuri’s hole, but not entering him, and Yuri pushed back against the pressure. Otabek was close to breaking, Yuri was sure of it, all he had to do was push him a little bit further. 

“Please Otabek. I’d rather have you for real instead of just imagining it.” The hand on his ass clenched, and Yuri hissed in pleasure. He was sure there were going to be bruises there in the morning, “You don’t even have to move. I can ride you just like this.” He ground down his hips in emphasis, and Otabek bit down on his collarbone. Yuri moaned at the sensation as Otabek sucked a mark into his skin.

“You have to promise to stop if it hurts.” Otabek had finally looked up to meet his eyes, and his expression was deathly serious. Yuri’s eyes were wide, and he nodded frantically, already looking for the lube. Otabek stilled him once more, and caught Yuri’s chin to make him look in his eyes, “I’m not joking Yuri. I don’t want you hurt.”

“I won’t. I’ll start slow I promise,” Otabek released him with a wry look and fished out a condom from the bedside table and laid it on the bed next to the lube that had apparently been there all along, “This is gonna be so good.”

Yuri made quick work of opening the condom and rolling it over Otabek’s dick. He added more lube, and stroked Otabek’s dick a few more times than needed just for the soft grunt of pleasure he got for doing so. Otabek shifted back so he was sitting against the headboard, and Yuri crawled back into his lap. Otabek had one hand at the base of his dick holding it upright, while the other ran soothingly up and down Yuri’s side. 

Yuri licked his lips, suddenly nervous and caught Otabek’s eye, “Ready?” he asked, and waited for Otabek’s nod. He slid himself back and let the head of Otabek’s dick press against his hole. He cried out softly as the tip breached his entrance. It was big, bigger than the toy he’d bought specifically with this in mind. It stung, but not in a way he couldn’t handle. He moved slowly, soft rocks of his hips, letting gravity do most of the work as he slid slowly down Otabek’s length. He shuddered as he finally bottomed out, burying his head into Otabek’s shoulder as he tried to adjust. Otabek had kept his hips still the entire time, letting Yuri work at his own pace, and he did the same now, wrapping his arms around Yuri to keep him steady and leaving little soft kisses all over his face. Yuri whimpered and wrapped his arms tightly around Otabek’s neck, clenching down experimentally on the length inside him. 

Otabek hissed in his ear but still didn’t move. He rubbed his hands up and down Yuri’s back gently, and made soft soothing noises in his ear, “Yuri, you don’t have to. You can stop right now.”

“No, it’s good,” Yuri half slurred into his ear, “it’s so good Beka. Just bigger than I thought.” Yuri started making small rocking motions with his hips, raising himself up just a little before letting himself slide back down. Otabek watched him, obviously torn between his own pleasure and concern for Yuri’s discomfort. Yuri had tipped his head back and closed his eyes as he focused on the sensations, but he grasped around until he found Otabek’s hand and brought it to his own cock, half hard from the sting and lack of attention, “Get me off too.”

Otabek still looked uncertain, but he gripped Yuri firmly and started stroking him with the little twist at the end that drove him crazy. Yuri started timing his own movements to Otabek’s and it wasn’t long before he was raising himself all the way to the tip of Otabek’s dick before letting himself drop again. Otabek was panting and moaning softly under him, but he never let his hand stop moving. Yuri had curled his body forward around Otabek, and he would probably feel bad later about the way he was tugging on his hair but here and now he couldn't focus on anything except how good he felt. Otabek was stroking him a little harder and faster now, his eyes still focused on Yuri. It was almost perfect, just not quite enough.

Yuri changed his position, leaning back so he could brace himself on Otabek’s thighs, and his nerves lit up as the new angle brought Otabek’s dick directly against his prostate. He started fucking himself harder against Otabek, his head tipped back as he panted and tried to give himself more leverage. Otabek had moved with him and was leaving a trail of those biting kisses down Yuri’s chest. Yuri whimpered when his teeth scraped around a nipple and arched his body into Otabek’s mouth. 

“Beka, harder,” he managed to moan out, and he could feel Otabek’s hesitation. Yuri reached out to wrap his fingers back in Otabek’s hair and pulled him forward to give him a vicious kiss, biting at his lower lip before telling him again, “Beka I need you to fuck me harder.”

Otabek’s look shifted to one of determination. He grabbed onto Yuri’s hips and shifted himself back to get the leverage he needed before thrusting up with his hips and pulling Yuri hard onto his dick. Yuri moaned, and wrapped both of his arms back around Otabek’s shoulders as he let the other man fuck into him. Otabek gave him exactly what he’d asked for, long brutal thrusts that dragged against his prostate. Yuri rolled his hips back, reveling in the sensation of Otabek finally inside of him. 

“Is this what you wanted Yura?” Otabek asked, not slowing down but still watching Yuri, looking for any signs of discomfort. 

“So good Beka,” he moaned back, his own hand making its way to his dick so he could stroke himself in time with Otabek’s thrusts. Otabek groaned in response, and he began to thrust even harder. Yuri gave up trying to thrust back, and let Otabek just bounce him on his lap. 

The speed and extra stimulation from his hand was finally getting to be too much for Yuri. He felt his orgasm coming like a wave, and didn’t even have the chance to warn Otabek before he was shooting all over both of their stomachs. Otabek kept thrusting into him, working him through the orgasm, before he finally came into the condom with a grunt of his own that he buried into Yuri’s shoulder. Yuri had wrapped his arms and legs around Otabek, and shuddered around him, unable to move. He had a vague impression of Otabek shifting to lay him gently on the bed, and the sensation of emptiness that made him whine. He felt Otabek wipe him off with a shirt from the floor, and he grabbed his arm to pull him back to bed. Otabek slid in easily, spooning behind Yuri and wrapping his arms around him. Yuri had a vague thought that he should be getting up, but couldn’t remember why. “Beka,” he whimpered out, and immediately felt him wrapping himself tighter around him and nuzzling into the back of his neck.

“I’m here Yura. Are you hurting?”

Yuri shook his head, and managed to roll over. He extended his lower lip in a pout at his partner, and was rewarded when the other cradled him tighter to his chest. “I’m tired.” He thought Otabek was smiling into his hair, but couldn’t be sure. He started to stroke Yuri’s hair, and Yuri hummed contently and pushed into the touch. 

“I’m right here, Yura. Go to sleep.”

◈

Yuri woke slowly, feeling safe and content in a way he hadn’t since he was a small child. He moved to stretch and immediately whimpered at the pain that shot through his ass and lower back. He took a deep breath and tried to stretch again, groaning out loud at sting that flared again. He was trying to figure out the easiest way to maneuver himself out of bed when there were footsteps in the hallway and Otabek was kneeling at the side of the bed.

“Hey, hey, easy Yura.” Otabek pushed his hair back from his face and Yuri nailed him with his very best pout. Otabek chuckled at the sight and leaned in to drop a swift kiss on Yuri’s lips before helping him sit up at the edge of the bed. Yuri tugged the blanket over his lap as he slowly stretched, figuring out exactly how sore he was. Otabek sat at his side ready to help, a look of guilt across his face.

“Knock it off.” Yuri told him, elbowing him in the side. Otabek looked at him and arched a brow in question, and Yuri elbowed him again, “Stop looking like you feel bad.”

“But you’re hurting..”Otabek trailed off at Yuri’s laughter, bright and sharp in the morning light.

“My ass is sore. I’m hardly dying. If I didn’t have to work later I’d be trying to convince you to go again.” Otabek flushed faintly and looked away at that, and Yuri gripped Otabek’s shoulder and used it to pull himself to a standing position. He was feeling better now that he was upright, and he stretched his arms above his head and heard his back pop. He would be sore, but he was betting a hot bath when he got home would get him feeling better. It was a shame Otabek’s apartment only had a shower or he’d have insisted on soaking here and Otabek joining him to wash his hair. 

Instead he let Otabek hover as he limped his way to the kitchen where Otabek had prepared him breakfast. Otabek prepared his plate and served it to him, along with a cup of coffee made just the way Yuri liked without even having to ask. Yuri preened under the attention, wondering why all of his hookups hadn’t been like this. If this was how Otabek was going to treat him, Yuri intended on keeping him around for awhile.

◈

Something had shifted after that night. Yuri had thought Otabek was spoiling him before, but it only grew. Otabek always made sure to have some of Yuri’s favorite snacks in stock. He purchased special lotions and bandages so he could massage and take care of Yuri’s feet after a rough dance class, or even just a long shift at the cafe. They were meeting more frequently now, and Yuri was spending most of his nights at Otabek’s apartment.

The sex had only gotten better. After the first few times Yuri was able to take Otabek much easier, and wasn’t nearly as sore the next day. Otabek had insisted on Yuri topping a few times in between, which was nice enough, but Yuri wasn’t going to lie to himself about which he preferred. Yuri like feeling surrounded on all sides by Otabek. He liked the way Otabek held him and left dozens of little kisses all over his face every time he slipped slowly inside. He like the way the sting at the beginning shifted to pleasure, and how the burn the next day wouldn’t let him forget what he’d done the night before. He liked the way Otabek pampered him after, and the way he curled around Yuri at night when they finally fell asleep. 

“Heading back to your boyfriends?” Yuri stopped packing his overnight bag so he could flip Mila off, and she laughed at him, “You could always bring loverboy here you know. I don’t mind.”

Yuri shot her a scathing look. It was true they spent most of their time at Otabek’s, but it was only because his roommate was gone for the summer. The one time they’d tried hooking up at Yuri’s apartment after the air conditioner incident had ended with Mila walking in on them in the living room while Otabek’s tongue was up Yuri’s ass. Mila had laughed it off, but Otabek had been unable to look her in the eye for the awkward introductions and beer that had followed. 

“Hey,” Mila reached out and took hold of his hand, “I mean it. I know this is a new relationship and you’re really excited, but I kind of miss our time together too.”

Yuri felt like the world’s biggest piece of shit. He had been wrapped up in Otabek lately, but that was just a hook up, no matter how good the hook up was. Mila was one of his best friends, one of only two friends he really had.

“I’m sorry.” he mumbled, squeezing her hand, “How about I make it up to you this weekend? I’ll let you drag me to whatever dumb party you want, and we’ll spend the next day on the couch recovering from our hangovers together.”

Mila’s grin was incandescent, and she bounced excitedly in place, “And I get to dress you too?” Yuri groaned out loud, but finally nodded in agreement. Mila leaped forward to hug him. He supposed to he could stand to suffer a little. He really had been neglecting her. 

“Only if you stop calling Otabek my boyfriend. You know it’s not like that.”

“Whatever you say Yuratchka. I’m going to start planning.” Mila squeezed him once more before she bolted out of the room. Yuri shook his head and shoved his work clothes in the bag for the next morning. He had the feeling he was going to regret this.

◈

That weekend came faster than he’d thought. Yuri had begged and pleaded with his coworkers who all owed him fucking favors anyways, and had managed to get Saturday night and all of Sunday off to spend with Mila. The downside was he’d had to work extra long hours Thursday and Friday, and it left him almost no time for Otabek.

He’d explained that he hadn’t been spending enough time with Mila, and Otabek had understood but Yuri had seen the disappointment in his eyes. Yuri had felt a strange tightening in his chest, and a flash of guilt he didn’t understand. This was a hookup. He didn’t owe Otabek his time, and he shouldn’t feel bad about being busy for a few days. He’d made sure to suck him off in the shower the next morning, and hoped it would be enough to get Otabek through the weekend. 

Yuri had managed a quick nap after work Saturday, but it felt like he’d barely closed his eyes when Mila was jumping on him and demanding he wake up. He’d showered after work, so all he really had to do was sit there while Mila shoved clothes at him. 

“Really?” he eyed her choice of garments skeptically. The grey skinny jeans were from his closet. The slouchy off the shoulder was a different matter. He knew he could pull it off, but it wasn’t his usual look. However he had promised Mila this. He took the shot she offered before retreating to his room to change. 

These was definitely a new shirt he noted, and checked out his appearance in the mirror. Not only was the shift constantly sliding off one shoulder, it was too short for his frame and left a sliver of skin exposed at his midriff. He looked better than he’d thought, and he made a mental note to pay back Mila for the shirt. 

Mila insisted on more shots while she put Yuri’s hair up in some kind of complicated braid that looped back to a high ponytail, and by the time he was ready to walk out the door Yuri was already comfortably buzzed. He was just shoving his keys in his pocket while waiting for Mila to finish her make up when his phone went off. A quick look at the screen showed Otabek was calling, and Yuri figured he had enough time to answer. 

“Hey Beka.”

“Yura. Sorry, I know you’re busy with your roommate tonight. I just wanted to tell you to have a good night and be safe.” Yuri grinned to himself as he shifted the phone to his other ear. Otabek had never stopped being a giant sap, and Yuri not so secretly loved it. 

“Yeah, I’ll be careful. What are you up to tonight?”

“Same as you actually. Meeting up with some friends I was ignoring in favor of the best ass in town.”

Yuri laughed, and shook his head even though Otabek couldn’t see him, “Well then you be safe too. I’ll see you Monday?”

“I can’t wait. Bye Yura.” There was a pause like Otabek had something more he wanted to say, but the line disconnected instead. Yuri turned to find Mila leaning against the bathroom door and watching him thoughtfully. 

“So it’s Beka now. Thought this was just a hook up?”

Yuri snorted at her as he moved to pull his shoes on, “Shut up, you know that’s all it is. I don’t have time for relationship bullshit Mila.”

“Whatever you say Yuratchka.” Mila ruffled his hair affectionately, but he thought she looked sad. It only lasted a moment before she handed him another shot, “Now one more for the road then let’s get going.”

◈

Yuri was beyond drunk. Mila had found a whole neighborhood of different parties and they been flitting between them for hours now. He was sweaty and his feet were throbbing. He was also having a blast. He and his roommate had danced and drank together in a way they hadn’t really done all summer, and he loved it. He and Mila had sat down for just a second to drink some water when he felt her tense up, and caught her swearing under her breath. He looked in the direction she was facing and saw Seung Gil standing in the corner, causing his own snarl.

Seung Gil was another student at their college, majoring in Physics or Engineering, something with a lot of math. It was well known among the student body that he paid his tuition by dealing on the side. Mostly marijuana, occasionally a couple pills, but either way Yuri couldn’t stand him. Seung Gil was cold and aloof, and Yuri hated anyone involved with drugs on principle.

“We should leave.” Mila muttered next to him, “Let’s go to Sara’s house, she said she was cooking.”

“Yeah okay. Just let me take a piss first.” Yuri stood up and stumbled his way down the hallway. He thought there had been a bathroom down here somewhere.

He's humming to himself, tracing his fingers on the wall for balance when he's bumped into by someone coming out of a room coming off the hallway and he swears at them as he trips and almost falls. He's caught by an arm around his waist, and it's familiar in the best possible way. 

“Yura?” 

“Beka.” He almost whispers the name, but he's delighted and flings his arms around Otabek's neck. Otabek puts his arms around Yuri's waist but there's something wrong or maybe Yuri's just drunk. Either way it seems as though Otabek is moving too slowly, not as purposeful as he normally is. 

“Beka, why are you here? Were you trying to find me?” 

Otabek smiles at that, and Yuri rubs a thumb under his eye, wondering why they're so red, “No Yura I had no idea you were here. Why are you whispering?”

For some reason that's funny, and Yuri giggles as he snuggles closer to Otabek. The other man always radiates heat, and with his sweat drying on his skin Yuri is cold.

“Shhh, I'm not supposed to be with you. I'm here with Mila.”

Otabek's lips graze over his temple and his hand are running over the stretch of bare skin at Yuri's waist. He pulls Yuri off to the side of the hallway, and he follows willingly, eagerly snuggling back into Otabek's arms the second he is still. 

“Yura, where is Mila?” Otabek asks him, peering down the hallway like he's looking for her. Yuri isn't interested in his question because Yuri has Otabek's hands on him to think about. Otabek has to repeat the question twice more before Yuri can be bothered to answer. 

“Upstairs somewhere.” Yuri shrugs, having moved on to playing with Otabek's hair, “she's waiting for me to use the bathroom, then were leaving. Seung Gil is here.”

“Oh.” Otabek breathes out and seems almost hesitant when he asks, “You don't like Seung Gil?”

“Don't care about Seung Gil, Beka. Don't like drugs.” 

Otabek is definitely tense under his hands now, and Yuri is starting to become concerned. He's trying to fight his brain free of the alcohol’s influence so he can focus, but he's not making much progress. He's considering suggesting they move into a spare room for a reenactment of the night they met when he hears someone call Otabek's name. He turns towards the voice, ignoring the strangled sound Otabek makes and comes face to face with Seung Gil. 

Yuri freezes, not sure what the other man could want, but Seung Gil is ignoring him to hand a small baggie to Otabek. Otabek hesitates to grab it, looking back and forth between Seung Gil’s hand and Yuri's face. Seung gil makes an impatient noise and shakes his hand a little and Otabek reaches into his pocket and pulls out a few crumpled $20 bills. Otabek looks ashamed, but it doesn't stop him from giving Seung Gil the money and taking the baggie which he shoved into his back pocket. Seung Gil doesn't say another word, just goes back to the stairs, and Otabek waits until he's out of earshot to meet Yuri's eye. 

Yuri is still trying to put together what he's seen, and he's pulling away from Otabek and frowning like he's just realized he's been trying to solve a puzzle backwards. Otabek opens his mouth to speak, and Yuri covers it with one slender finger. 

“I'm going to use the bathroom. Don't wait for me.” Yuri's eyes were focused despite his lack of sobriety and he waited for Otabek to agree, “I need to think about this, and we can talk Monday.” Yuri told him, dropping a swift kiss onto Otabek’s cheek before he turned away to find the bathroom once more.

“Yura.” Yuri stopped to turn around, and Otabek wrapped the leather jacket he had just been wearing around Yuri’s shoulders. “You were shivering.” was all he said before he back away. Yuri retreated, finally locating the bathroom and immediately slamming and locking the door behind him. Otabek wasn't waiting there when he opened it, and he curled into himself as he walked back upstairs to find Mila Mila. He was regretting this entire night.

◈

By the time Monday rolled around Yuri’s mood had only gotten worse. He had promised Mila the weekend and he let her drag him to one more party, but he was so angry he couldn’t enjoy himself and started ruining her night as well. She’d made her apologies to Sara and dragged him home where he’d retreated to his room with a bottle of tequila. Mila had busted in and taken his bottle away then dragged the story out of him. She had ignored the tears trickling from his eyes and let him snuggle into her shoulder until he’d passed out.

She’d been similarly gentle the next morning, holding his hair back as he threw up, and making him tea and hashbrowns for breakfast. Then she’d ripped him apart as they sat on the couch. It wasn’t fair, she’d told him, to expect Otabek to change his behavior when Yuri was only using him as a hookup. If he wanted the drugs to stop, Yuri had to have an honest conversation with him about not only his history with his mother, but also one about what was between them. Yuri spent hours thinking over her words, but in the end he had to admit that she was right. 

He finished his shift Monday afternoon and walked home, still thinking over what he was going to tell Otabek. His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he grabbed for it hoping it was Otabek even though so far he hadn’t contacted him at all. He frowned at the unfamiliar number. It had called him repeatedly over the past week but never left a message. Yuri had assumed it was a telemarketer, and he quickly blocked the number. He was sure they’d just start calling him from a different number soon enough, but he was fed up.

He changed out of his work clothes and scrubbed his face in the bathroom. He redressed and spent a long time staring at Otabek’s jacket before pulling it on. It was warm and still smelled like Otabek’s cologne. He didn’t pack a bag though. He wasn’t willing to look that pathetic if Otabek had decided enough was enough. 

He felt like the walk to Otabek’s apartment took hours, but also like he blinked and was there. He took a deep breath to fortify himself before he knocked at the door. Otabek must have been waiting because it was opened almost immediately. Otabek was standing there, and for a second Yuri forgot how to breathe. His hair was ruffled, and he was actually fully dressed for once.

“Hey,” Yuri greeted him after the silent went one too long, “you gonna let me in?”

“Yura,” Otabek breathed out and then he reached out and yanked Yuri to him, clutching him tightly around his shoulders, “I thought you might not come.”

Yuri managed to maneuver them both into the apartment before he tentatively returned the embrace. He let the touch settle him, before he pushed Otabek back onto the couch and stepped back. They still needed to talk. He paced the living room restlessly for a minute, before finally settling himself against the wall across from Otabek. 

“Yura, I’m sorry. I didn’t know how you felt. I can flush it all if you want.”

Yuri shook his head before Otabek even finished the sentence, “I never told you. Look, I thought about this. I won’t tell you what to do in your free time. But I won’t be around it. I don’t care if it’s just weed or whatever. If that’s not okay with you tell me now.”

“No, no, that’s perfect, I promise you’ll never see it.” Otabek was twitching in his seat, and Yuri took pity on him. He moved across the room and pushed Otabek back against the couch. Otabek’s eyes were big, watching him in disbelief as Yuri straddled his lap and wrapped his arms around shoulders. 

“You don’t have anything else to talk about right?” Yuri asked, and Otabek shook his head, his eyes still trained on Yuri’s face. “Good. Get your pants off. I don’t want to think about this anymore.”

Otabek’s mouth opened and closed before he got with the program. He wrapped his arms tight around Yuri’s waist, and latched onto Yuri’s neck to bite and suck at the sensitive skin there. Yuri tipped his head back and groaned. Normally he was paranoid about Otabek leaving a mark, but he couldn’t be bothered to care right now. He was trying to strip out of his shirt when Otabek grabbed his wrist.

“Don’t.” Yuri arched a brow at him in question, and Otabek nuzzled into his neck, his hands climbing down the back of Yuri’s pants, “I like seeing you in my jacket.”

Yuri grinned, already plotting how he could use this knowledge to his advantage, “Well I’ll make you a deal Beka. The jacket can stay on, but your pants need to come off.”

Otabek gave him a quick grin in return before dragging Yuri down into a heated kiss. Yuri’s hands were already at his waist trying to unbutton Otabek’s jeans when he paused.

“Otabek Altin, are you actually wearing pants _and_ underwear?”

“Yeah, I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable, but I hate it.” 

Yuri laughed, and Otabek slid both arms under Yuri’s thighs to scoop him up and haul him back to the bedroom. Yuri was still giggling when they went through the bedroom door, but by the time Otabek tossed him on the bed and was undoing his jeans with his teeth, laughing was the furthest thing from his mind.

◈

Yuri sauntered down the sidewalk to work the next day, humming along to a mindless tune. He was still wearing Otabek’s jacket, along with one of his shirts under it. He’d also borrowed a pair of clean briefs, unsurprisingly still in the packaging.

He was sore, but it was a pleasant ache. Otabek had fucked him in his jacket last night, slow and sweet until Yuri had sobbed with the need for release. He’d taken him again in the shower, and had woken him this morning with a blowjob and breakfast in bed. Yuri had dragged himself away because he had to work, but he was already thrumming with anticipation at returning to Otabek’s bed that night. He was in such a good mood he didn’t notice the woman waiting at the cafe door until she stepped in front of him.

“Oh, sorry ma’am I didn’t see…”

His voice trailed off as he took in the woman for the first time. Blonde hair, pale blue eyes and pale skin marred with pits and scars. She had once been beautiful, but now she was fragile and twitchy. He could see her eyes sweep over him, taking in the too long hair, the hickeys not quite covered by Otabek’s shirt, before finally looking up to meet his own gaze. She gave him a tremulous smile, and he felt like he’d been punched in the gut. He took a deep breath, and had to swallow a couple times before he could make words come out, and even then it was only the one.

“Mama.”


	10. ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang plays detective and tries to figure out what went wrong between Otabek and Yuri.

“Well, that’s not very fucking helpful.” Guang Hong muttered at his phone, sitting on the couch next to Leo. They’d walked over to JJ’s soon after Otabek had locked himself in his room again. JJ and Bella had been all too eager to talk about the mystery of what had happened between Otabek and Yuri. Guang Hong had been trying to get in touch with Mila, who had the advantage of being the only person actually around during the summer, but she wasn’t taking his calls. Based on his glare at the phone, she wasn't going to be showing up.

“No luck?” Leo asked, turning his body slightly towards Guang Hong. Guang Hong pouted at his phone once more before flinging his body back and resting his head on Leo’s shoulder. 

“No.” Guang Hong let out another frustrated huff and crossed his arms, “She says it’s over and done with, and that all we’re doing is opening old wounds and invading their privacy.”

“That’s kind of cold.” JJ remarked, a furrow in his brow although he didn’t look away from the video game he was playing. Leo took a chance to put his arm around Guang Hong and give him a gentle squeeze. Guang Hong immediately nestled closer to him, shoving his phone into his pocket.

“Yeah, I don’t get it. Mila loves interfering in other people’s love lives. I just want Yuri to have some kind of closure to all of this. The whole thing just seems messy.”

“Well, go over this again for me.” Bella interjected, depositing a plate of snacks and some drinks for them all on the wobbly end table, “What do we know for sure?”

“Okay, so over the summer Otabek meets Yuri right?” Leo said, looking to the others for confirmation.

“Yeah, from what I gathered they met at a party and hooked up in a closet or something right away.” Guang Hong added, grabbing a can of soda and popping the top before curling back into Leo’s side. Leo ignored the pointed look Bella gave him in favor of this new information.

“Wait, they hooked up that night?” he asked, making sure he'd heard that right.

“Well yeah, that’s what Yuri said.” Guang Hong looked confused at the stares he was getting. Even JJ had paused his game to turn around and look at him. 

“But, that doesn’t make sense. Otabek hates hooking up.” JJ spoke for all them, still staring at Guang Hong like he personally had offended him with this bad information.

“Look,” Guang Hong told them with his hands in front of his body defensively, “I’m just repeating what I was told. Yuri blew him in a closet, and then Otabek wouldn’t let him anywhere near his dick the next time they went out. In fact, Yuri said it took over a month before Otabek would have sex with him. Yuri was really annoyed because what’s the point of having a fuck buddy who won’t fuck you?”

“Waitwaitwaitwaitwait, did you just say fuck buddy?” JJ interrupted to ask. He looked shocked, and Leo felt the same way. Bella’s eyebrows arched so high they had practically disappeared into her hairline. “Yuri was just using Beks as a fuck buddy?”

Oh good, JJ was angry. Not that Leo blamed him. Otabek was not a fuck buddy type of guy, and he would be furious if Yuri had just been using him and his friend was this broken up about it. 

“Whoa, back off. Look, Yuri is an idiot okay. They hooked up right away when they first met, and Yuri assumed it meant they had a more casual relationship. It was obvious to literally anyone else that he was actually dating Otabek, but forcing him to admit that before he was ready would have just freaked him out. Mila and I were doing our best to get him to that conclusion on his own. Don’t blame us because neither of them bothered to communicate.”

Guang Hong glared at all of them, especially JJ, that same fierce look Leo remembered from when he was protecting Yuri’s secrets before. He had leaned forward on the couch, away from Leo, daring JJ or anyone else in the room to come after him. Leo groaned loudly and covered his face with his hands. This was such a disaster. Across the room Bella looked as frustrated as he was, but JJ was not backing down.

“I’m sorry, are you saying this is Otabek’s fault? He tries to have a genuine relationship with your friend who clearly didn’t give a shit, and when his number is blocked we’re supposed to feel bad for Yuri?”

“Listen you fucking asshole, Otabek was the one who ghosted and disappeared on Yuri, and even if he had some misconceptions I can guarantee Yuri treated him well so you can take your ideas about my friend and shove them up your-”

“Okay, enough!” Bella yelled, and she moved to sit on JJ’s lap and forced him back into his seat. Leo wrapped one hand gently over Guang Hong’s wrist, and managed to tug him back as well. Guang Hong flopped back into the couch, pulling away from Leo and sulking. Leo mourned the loss of contact and tried to scoot closer but stopped at the cold look Guang Hong shot him. Bella ran her fingers through JJ’s hair and murmured to him softly. He took a deep breath and leaned against her shoulder, clearly backing down from the fight for the moment. “Guang Hong, what do you mean Beks was the one who disappeared on Yuri?”

Guang Hong looked as though he’d rather walk out the door instead of answer, but JJ had backed down so he was clearly willing to as well. He took a breath and stretched his arms out before answering, “Yeah, like his phone went from ringing multiple times a day to nothing at all.”

“You’re sure it was Beks?” Leo asked gently, and Guang Hong nodded again.

“Yeah, Mila changed his ringtone on Yuri’s phone to that Dua Lipa song, you know don’t pick up the phone, you know he’s only calling cuz he’s drunk and alone? I was back by that point, and I heard it go off all the time and then all of a sudden gone overnight.”

“And Yuri never thought to call Otabek?” Bella asked, and Leo could tell she was trying to be gentle but he braced himself for Guang Hong’s anger anyways. Instead Guang Hong surprised him by sighing, and leaning forward to brace his elbows on his knees. 

“Believe me, I tried to convince him it was an option. He had some personal shit going on this summer, and that got pretty intense. He couldn’t deal with thinking about Otabek at the same time, and by the time it was all done he felt like it was too late I guess. I don’t know, I told you he was an idiot.”

“Maybe more than you realize.” Bella muttered, and both Leo and Guang Hong looked up at her in question, and she sighed. “I talked to Beks a little the other day and managed to drag some more stuff out of him. He’s pretty adamant that he kept trying to call Yuri for weeks and that his number was blocked, and on the occasion he tried calling from a different number it was ignored.”

“Yeah, Yuri has been ignoring calls from any numbers he doesn’t recognize since this summer. He even had to...oh my god.” Guang Hong’s face dropped and he started thumping his forehead into his fist. “That fucking idiot. That dumb fucking asshole. Guys, I need to stop at a friend’s place. I’ll give you a call later.” Guang Hong jumped over the back of the couch and grabbed his bag before any of them could move. Bella leaned forward to call after him, but he ignored her and was out the door a second later. They were left to look at each other in confusion, wondering what the fuck had just happened. 

==

It was a few hours later when Leo’s phone rang, and he saw Guang Hong’s name on the screen. He was still at JJ’s, playing video games and avoiding having to look at Otabek for the moment. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to stand the guilt of going behind his back unless he could say he had a solution. Leo answered the phone and almost dropped it at the blare of loud music he could hear in the background. A moment later a door slammed and the music was muffled and he could hear Guang Hong’s voice.

“Leo, you there?”

“Yeah, I’m here. Jesus, what was that?”

“Ah. That was Yuri. He didn’t really like what Mila and I had to tell him. He’s locked himself in his room for now. Any chance I can come back over?”

“Well, I’m at JJ’s but Bella is already in bed and I don’t think JJ is far behind.” JJ shot him a thumbs up in the affirmative, shutting down his console now that Leo was on the phone. “And obviously Beks is at my place.”

“Well, why don’t you come to mine if it’s not too much trouble.” Guang Hong offered, “unless you have other plans or something.”

“Yeah, I can do that.” Leo agreed and does his best to ignore the huge grin developing on JJ’s face.

“Cool, I’ll text you the address. Should be home in ten or so.” Guang Hong hung up the phone, and Leo was immediately tackled by JJ who was cackling in his ear. 

“Awww, Leo he invited you over! You can finally, what was it, let him piss on you while you masturbate and cry?”

“Oh my god, you’re the worst, get off of me.” Leo yelled, pushing at his friend until he had some space. He slipped on his shoes and stalked out the front door, flipping off JJ as he went. It didn’t matter, because JJ’s laughter followed him all the way to the street. 

It didn’t take that long to get to Guang Hong's place, but it was a big change between Leo's dingy college student neighborhood to there. Guang Hong lived in a row of brand new townhouses, with secured entryways and private garages. Leo whistled as he hit the buzzer to be let in. This was fancy, and he felt uncomfortable in the face of it. 

The door was opened a second later and Leo was greeted by a frowning Guang Hong. Clearly he didn’t care at all about how nice his neighborhood was and was dressed in sweats with a large questionable stain at the knee and a ratty shirt that had more holes than fabric at the sides. Guang Hong stepped aside to usher Leo in.

The inside of the apartment was nicely furnished, but extremely messy. Leo almost cringed at the piles of dishes and takeout containers he saw all over the kitchen counters. The living room was cleaner, with only a few half empty cups scattered around and some dirty socks shoved half under the couch. 

“This is nice.” Leo offered as he looked around and tried to avoid thinking about how the garbage might have just moved. Guang Hong snorted at him as he made his way over to the kitchen with no fear of whatever could be growing in his trash.

“Yeah, my dad picked it out and he pays my bills. He's kind of a snob. Normally Yuri comes over to help me clean but we've both been kind of busy this week. You want anything to drink?” Guang Hong asked him over his shoulder as he sauntered to the fridge. “I have beer and uh, vodka?” Here in his own home, Guang Hong was less the docile and shy young man he’d encountered so far. Leo had seen glimpses of it when Guang Hong had gone head to head with JJ earlier that day, but he suspected there was a lot more personality that Guang Hong normally kept to himself. Now he seemed too tired to bother with any sort of pretenses, and Leo found himself enjoying the rough edges more than he thought he might. 

“Beer would be great thanks.” Leo answered Guang Hong’s question, and Guang Hong tossed him a can and shut the fridge with his foot in one smooth motion. Guang Hong gestured him to the living room and Leo followed him to sit on the massive couch. It was soft, and Leo sank into it with a sigh. Guang Hong was making himself comfortable on the other end, and Leo waited for him to speak. He opened his mouth, then stopped and frowned before taking a drink of his beer and sighing.

“I don’t even know how to explain all of this without it sounding ridiculous. It’s really a massive misunderstanding made worse because our friends are goddamn idiots.” Guang Hong finally admitted, his lips pursed as he took another long gulp of his drink. “It was really just a fucking miscommunication because Yuri had to get a new phone this summer.”

“Can it be, I don’t know fixed? You said you talked to Yuri right?” Leo asks, cracking open his own beer and taking a healthy swallow. He was a little disappointed Guang Hong drank the same cheap swill he did, but a free beer was a free beer.

Guang Hong’s head dropped and he pouted ferociously at the beer in his hand, “I don’t honestly know. Yuri was pretty pissed when all the details came out, and he’s mad I even talked to you about it. I don’t know what he’ll do when he calms down or how long that would even take.”

They were silent for a moment as Leo digested the news. Guang Hong was still holding back on a lot of details, and Leo was trying to be patient and not push for more information. He understood that Guang Hong’s loyalty was to Yuri first, but it was frustrating to know he was still missing big pieces of the full picture. Guang Hong slammed the rest of his beer, then tossed the empty can over his head behind the couch. He took a breath, and he looked at Leo from under his lashes.

“Leo? I want to ask you something, but I don’t want to be like too forward.” Leo was pretty sure he stopped breathing. He hoped this was going where he thought it was, but he also didn’t dare assume. He managed a nod and tried to school his face into a polite interest. Guang Hong gave him an appraising look before sitting up on his knees and scooting closer, “I don’t want to be like Yuri and Otabek. I don’t want there to be a misunderstanding between us. I’m really interested in you, and I got the feeling you might feel the same, and if you don’t that’s okay but I just wanted it out there.”

“Guang Hong,” Leo breathed out, and the other man looked like he was stealing himself for a rejection and Leo reached out to take his hand, “yes, I’ve been interested since we met.”

Guang Hong gave him a bright smile and used his grip on his hand to tug Leo to his feet, “Well in that case, I’m going to need you to come to my room. I’ve been having thoughts about you I’d like to act on.”

Leo couldn’t do anything but laugh and follow along. He completely forgot about what he had come over here for originally as he followed Guang Hong up the stairs. He had some thoughts of his own he really wanted to act out.

==

Otabek eyed up the door to Leo’s room from his spot at the kitchen sink. He still hadn’t retrieved any of his pipes since that disaster of a party, and Leo had continued to keep all their weed in his room as well. Normally it was no problem, as Otabek was always welcome to knock on the door or just go in to retrieve what he needed if Leo wasn’t home, but today Leo had company. Leo had disappeared on him the prior weekend and Otabek hadn’t seen him for a couple days. He had actually started getting worried when Leo showed back up, dazed and deliriously happy, with the marks on his neck a clear indication of what he had been doing. 

Otabek sighed and continued washing the dishes. He hated the task, but he also wanted mac and cheese and they only had one pan and he’d used it as a bowl for cereal the night before. It was probably good for him to slow down a little on his smoking anyways. He’d gone a little crazy after everything that had happened this summer, and it was starting to show in his grades. He should see if JJ was around to study this afternoon. It wasn’t the first time Guang Hong had been over this week, and he could get loud. 

He was pulled from his contemplation by a knock on the door, and he dried his hands off before jogging to the door and answered without bothering to check the peephole. Anything was a welcome distraction from the dishes.  
He took back that thought a second later when he was greeted by Yuri’s scowling face at his door. Yuri looked furious, but under that Otabek thought he caught a hint of uncertainty in his eyes. He looked ragged, his hair sloppily thrown up and dark circles under his eyes. 

“Hi.” Yuri told him, when it was clear Otabek was too shocked to speak, “I think we need to talk.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that only took a month. Sorry you guys, holidays and a nasty case of writer's block kicked my ass. Many thanks to thoughtsappear for her beta work and pandamilo for letting me bounce ideas and frustrations around.


	11. eleven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Final flashback chapter!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow that took way longer than I was hoping for. Thanks to anyone who is still reading this. I've been building up to this chapter for a long time, so I hope it lives up to what you were looking for!

“You shouldn’t be here.” Yuri told Irina, fighting the urge to step back. He wasn’t a child anymore, but it didn’t stop him from wanting to hide behind an older adult and let them deal with his mother. He was doing his best to not be blatantly hostile, if only for the sake of his job, but as a result Irina just ignored whatever she didn’t want to hear.

“Look how tall you’ve gotten Yuratchka. You barely came past my belly the last time I saw you. I can’t believe how big and handsome you are, even though you could use a haircut. I’ve been trying to call you, you know.” Irina reached up like she was wanted to touch his hair, and Yuri took a big step back, trying to keep his disgust off his face.

“No, just back up for a minute.” Yuri put his hands up to act as a barrier between them when Irina moved forward to follow him. “I haven’t seen you in ten years. Why are you here?”

“Yuratchka-”

“No, don’t call me that. I don’t know you.” Yuri shook his head, and closed his eyes tightly hoping this would all be a bad dream and Irina would be gone when he opened them. He wasn’t that lucky, and she was still standing there looking at him like he’d hurt her by telling her not to use his diminutive. 

“I’m sorry Yurat-I’m sorry Yuri. I just wanted to see you. I told you I’ve been calling you.”

“This is insane.” Yuri muttered, shaking his head again. He could see Viktor watching him from behind the counter, and he knew he needed to end this before the other man came outside to investigate. “I don’t even know why you’re here, but I really can’t do this right now.”

“Yuri, I just want to spend some time with you. You can’t even spare a minute?” Irina stepped forward again and tried to reach out for his arm, and that was the end of it. She clearly wasn’t going to listen to anything he said nicely.

“Irina, stop! I don’t know how you knew to find me here, but I don’t want to see you right now. You don’t get to drop in after a decade and expect me to drop everything.”

“Is there a problem here?”

Fuck. Viktor’s natural nosiness had gotten the better of him, and he was leaning against the door with what a casual observer would assume was a friendly smile. Yuri saw the sharp edges of it, and knew he needed to end this fast. 

“No problems Viktor. Just someone who was lost and ended up here by mistake. Isn’t that right ma’am?” Yuri levelled a look at Irina, and for a second he thought she was going to throw a fit, but after a moment her shoulders dropped, and she nodded and offered a shaky smile in Viktor’s direction. 

“Yes sir, that was all.”

“Well,” Viktor eyed Irina, and Yuri could tell he didn’t quite trust the explanation. _Just drop it, please just fucking drop it_ , he chanted in his head, staring at Viktor’s forehead like he could will the thoughts into his head. “If that really was all I’m going to need my employee to get inside and start organizing the stockroom. If there’s nothing else you need here ma’am, I’m going to have to ask you to stop loitering on my sidewalk.”

Yuri took the oppurtunity Viktor gave him and ducked inside the store. The stockroom was in the basement of the store, and Viktor hated organizing it and taking inventory, which meant Yuri was normally down here at the end of every month. That was still over a week away however, which meant Viktor was just trying to get Yuri away from Irina and out of sight, and Yuri was glad to take advantage of the excuse. 

Since he was in the stockroom anyways, Yuri decided to get a headstart on his monthly organizing. He’d been at it for about half an hour when he heard steps coming down the stairs, and a moment later Viktor poked his head in. 

“She’s gone. She hung around a little longer down the road, but I called the Katsuki’s and they chased her away from their storefront too and she finally seems to have given up.”

“Thanks.” Yuri said, stretching and moving towards the door so he could head back upstairs and actually do today’s work. He was stopped by Viktor’s hand on his shoulder, and he arched an eyebrow at his boss. 

“Yuri, I hope you know if you’re having a problem you can come to me.” Viktor offered, an uncharacteristically serious look on his face. 

“I know Viktor. It’s really nothing you need to worry about, but feel free to chase her away if she shows up again.”

Viktor didn’t look content with the answer, but before he could say anything there was a shout for help from upstairs and Yuri gave Viktor a quick grin before slipping free of his grip and bounding up the steps. He didn’t want to think about Irina anymore. 

==

Yuri decided not to swing by his apartment for clean clothes that night. Mila knew him too well, saw through him too easily, and he didn't want to get bogged down in a conversation about his day just then. Instead he went straight to Otabek's and knocked on the door to be let in. 

The door was wrenched open, and Otabek stood flustered on the other side. He looked around in alarm for a moment, before settling on Yuri with an arched eyebrow. 

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah, why wouldn't it be?” Yuri barely kept it from turning into a snarl as he pushed past Otabek into the apartment, throwing himself on the couch with a huff. 

“Well, you don't normally try and break my door down knocking.” Otabek returned levelly, but there was still a question in his eyes as he looked over Yuri. Yuri tensed before forcing himself to take a deep breath and released some of the tension in his body with it.

“Sorry.” He finally managed to grunt out, “Just a shit day at work.”

Otabek eyes softened and he pressed a quick kiss to Yuri’s forehead before he moved past him into the kitchen. “Are you hungry?” he called over his shoulder.

“No, I’m good.” Yuri tipped his head back into the couch and rubbed at his eyes. Maybe being here was a mistake. He was on edge, and he didn’t know how to shake the nasty burning feeling under his skin. He was startled by a light touch to his knee, and opened his eyes to see Otabek sitting on the couch next to him, dark eyes furrowed in concern.

Yuri snapped. He dove forward into Otabek’s lap, and took his lips in a bruising kiss. Otabek took a second to catch up, but he was enthusiastic in his response, grabbing and massaging Yuri’s ass with both hands. Yuri bit Otabek’s lip, maybe a little harder than needed, and rolled his hips forward. 

“Bed.” he ordered, and Otabek scooped him up and carried him back to the bedroom. It didn’t take long for Yuri to have both of them stripped, and he was thrusting the lube into Otabek’s hands before flipping onto his hands and knees. 

Otabek was always so gentle, so utterly thorough in his prep of Yuri, but that’s not what Yuri needed tonight. He pushed his hips back, relishing in the burn he felt from the intrusion of Otabek’s thick fingers. He barely let Otabek get to three fingers before he pulled away to grab a condom and rolled it over Otabek’s erection. 

“Yura, that really wasn’t a lot of prep-” Otabek tried to reason with him, but Yuri wasn’t having it. He silenced Otabek with more brutal, biting kisses, and then he was sinking onto his dick.

Shit. This was too much, too fast. Otabek had been right about the prep, but the edge of pain was the perfect distraction from the day’s events. He raised himself a few inches before dropping, and Otabek groaned beneath him. Yes, this was what he needed. Yuri moved his hips harder and faster, and Otabek was falling apart beneath him. For a few glorious minutes he was free of all the confusion and rage from earlier. There was only the sharp sting in his ass, and the pleasure of Otabek trembling and shaking beneath his fingertips.

All too soon it was over, and Otabek was moaning his name as he came into the condom. Otabek clutched onto him to catch his breath, and then started to reach for Yuri’s own dick, clearly intending on returning the favor. Yuri swatted his hand away. He’d never been hard to begin with. 

Otabek looked stricken, but Yuri barely noticed because almost as soon as Otabek came he was filled with that same nasty energy. He couldn’t stay in this bed, couldn’t let the ruin of his past foul up the good things of his present. He yanked on his clothes, shaking with the need to _run, escape, hide_. He was halfway to the door, when he was stopped by a hand on his arm, Otabek standing there in nothing but his boxers, confusion on his face.

“Yura what are you doing?”

“I, I just-” Words failed him, and it made Yuri so _angry_. Why didn’t Otabek just understand he needed to run.

“Yura, come back to bed. Let me help you.”

Otabek pulled him closer, his eyes soft and his voice gentle. Yuri dropped his head onto Otabek’s shoulder, and shuddered while Otabek ran his hands down his back. Otabek guided him back to the bedroom, and stripped Yuri back to his boxers before getting them both into bed. Otabek held him, humming in his ear and running soothing fingers down his body for hours until Yuri finally fell asleep.

He woke after only a few hours. It was still dark, Otabek was sleeping soundly next to him, his face relaxed in the dim lighting. Yuri ran his fingers gently over Otabek’s face, tracing his eyebrows and lips. Otabek scrunched his nose and turned his face into his pillow, trying to return to his slumber. The faintest smile ghosted Yuri’s lips, but now that he was awake he was on edge again. He did his best to relax, but eventually he gave up. He moved as silently as possible, and dressed himself once more before slipping out the door. He’d go home and change before going for a run. He’d burn the excess energy off somehow. 

==

Beka (11:15am): _You were already gone when I woke up, is everything ok?_

Beka (2:34pm): _Did you want to come over this weekend? I have the day off work Sunday_

Beka (10:18pm): _I hope you’re okay, you were pretty rough with yourself. Sleep well <3_

Yuri looked at the messages, but he didn’t know what to say, so he didn’t say anything. 

==

The next time he saw Irina, Viktor wasn't around to intervene. He was alone at the cafe, slowly starting to clean up in preparation to close when she walked in. She walked up to the counter, ignoring his glare, and slapped a handful of bills down with a challenge in her eyes. 

“I'd like a hot chocolate and a scone please.”

Yuri didn't move, didn't even glance at her money. He grabbed the counter so he wouldn't be tempted to physically remove her from the premises and leaned in so he could be sure she was focused on him.

“You need to leave. You’re not welcome here.”

“I’m a paying customer.” She met his glare with one of her own and shoved the money forward again. He didn’t move and her eyes narrowed, “Such poor manners. You were raised better.”

“No thanks to you.”

“Yes, yes, I was a horrible mother. My father made that very clear throughout the years.” She paused here, inspecting her nails, and Yuri tensed at the mention of his grandfather. He could handle his mother, but Grandpa didn’t deserve any of the strife she always brought with her. Irina noticed his tension and smile meanly, her hand coming to slap the counter. “I just wanted to see you Yuri. Maybe visit Papa too. I suppose I can stop there tomorrow since you can’t be bothered to even pour me a drink.”

Yuri wanted to throw the money back in her face, but he clenched his teeth and moved to prepare her drink and grab a scone from the display case. He put them both in to go containers, and slid them across the counter. Irina gloated from her position at the counter, and his arms trembled with the need to smack the self satisfied expression off her face, but he maintained the control necessary to not jump over the counter.

“There’s your shit. I’d appreciate you leaving and not coming back. It should be easy, you’ve done it enough times before.”

“You’ve always been such a nasty ungrateful child.” Irina shook her head and clucked her tongue at him, “Are you really surprised I left you behind? Don’t worry booboo, I’m not really here for you.”

Yuri kept his face impassive, although his hands clenched into fists under the counter where she couldn’t see. This wasn’t even an original barb as far as things went, and he’d been expecting it. Still, as soon as she left the store and was out of sight he jumped the counter to lock the door and flip the sign to closed. He doubted anyone would be by, and he needed to be alone. He shot a text to Otabek to let him know he wouldn’t be coming over that night, and another to Mila letting her know he’d probably be home late. When he was done he shut his phone off and grabbed the special heavy duty cleaning supplies Viktor kept on hand just for Yuri. He needed to scrub every surface until he was sure the taint of his mother’s presence was gone for good. 

==

For as long as it had taken for Yuri and Otabek to fall together, it took no time at all for them to fall apart.Yuri left more and more of Otabek’s messages ignored, not knowing what to say. Yuri could tell that Otabek was trying to be patient and let Yuri have his space, but he could also see that he was getting frustrated. When they were together, they started snapping at each other. More than once their nights together ended with Yuri screaming and slamming the door behind him as he walked out. Otabek never yelled, but became a silent pillar of resentment. 

Irina hadn’t stopped either. She was still showing up to Yuri’s work, always finding a time when he was alone. He wanted to rage, he wanted to scream and throw her out, but he kept his cool as long as it kept her away from his grandpa. She’d never kept interest in him for long, and he assumed this wouldn’t be any different. She was using again, he was positive, and that had always been more important to her than him. He’d learned the calls from strange numbers were her, and he couldn’t block the numbers fast enough before she changed them. It didn’t matter when it was so easy for her to just show up. At least she didn’t know where he lived yet. 

==

It couldn’t last. Yuri felt like he was ready to snap at any moment. He had been doing his best to avoid Mila, knowing if she saw him she’d drag the whole sorry affair out of him, and he just couldn’t handle that yet. He was closing up the shop, rushing a little since he was alone when he heard the door ring and his shoulders tensed. 

It was Irina. Of course it was. She moved up to the counter, and he could tell from the jerk in her steps and the shake in her hands that she was in a bad state. 

“Yuratchka, my baby, my precious boy, Mommy needs your help.”

“I’ll be glad to call you a cab, but I don’t think they go to hell.” He crossed his arms and glared at her. She didn’t get mad, but started wringing her fingers and laughed oddly at him.

“Such a clever boy, always joking. Just, Mommy just had a little problem with her check and I just need a little money. You can help me can’t you, I see you always in here, working so hard, Mommy’s so proud of her baby. Maybe just let me peek in the register, I only need a little.”

“You have got to be fucking kidding me.” Yuri couldn’t say he was really surprised by what Irina had just asked him, he really had no expectations of her, but he was enraged. “I work so hard, so that I can pay for my college. I work to give myself a good life since I never had a mother to look after me.”

Irina started to open her mouth, but Yuri was done with her shit for the night, “You need to leave before I call the police. Bothering me is one thing, but asking to steal from my job is a whole new low.”

He glared at her until she was out the door, then he slammed and locked it behind her. He tried to finish cleaning, but he was too angry. He threw the cleaning supplies back in their closet with a scream, and yanked his jacket on. He checked his phone while he looked outside to make sure Irina was really gone. His thumb lingered over the messages icon, and he made up his mind. Maybe he didn’t deserve it, but there was only person he really wanted to be with tonight. 

==

Yuri was surprised to hear music and voices from Otabek’s apartment. He stood outside, hesitating, but then he squared his shoulders and knocked. He didn’t think anyone was going to answer, but then the door was pulled open and there was Otabek standing there. Yuri was so relieved he wanted to cry and fling himself into Otabek’s arms, but he held back. 

“Yura? We didn’t have plans tonight.”

“No, um, I just wanted to see you.” Yuri looked at his feet, peeking at Otabek from under his lashes. Otabek didn’t look happy to see him, was in fact frowning deeply. Otabek shifted uncomfortably from side to side, and ran a hand through his hair. 

“Yura, it’s not that I don’t want to see you, but this really isn’t a good night for you to show up.”

“Oh.” Yuri shoved his hands in his pockets and curled his shoulders in. He was so fucking stupid. Of course Otabek didn’t want him here with the way he’d been acting lately. “I can just go then. I’m sorry.”

“Yura-”

Otabek was cut off by someone yelling his name from the apartment, and Yuri was able to catch a glimpse over his shoulder. There in the living room was Seung Gil, and Yuri watched with horror as he snorted a line of coke off Otabek’s coffee table. When he met Otabek’s eyes, the other boy looked defiant. 

Yuri let out a laugh he was sure was just a bit hysterical. Of course. Of fucking course. Everyone in his life cared more about drugs than about him. He backed away, shaking his head, and Otabek grabbed his elbows and yanked him forward. 

“You asked me just to keep it away from you. I’ve done exactly that. I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were coming.” Otabek pled with him, and now that Yuri was looking he could could how dilated his eyes were. 

“No, you’re right Otabek. This was my mistake.” Yuri shook his head again, and yanked his arms away. “I learned this lesson a long time ago, but thanks for reminding me. Unfuckingbelievable.” Yuri moved back and ran out of the building way too fast for Otabek to follow, and he didn’t stop until he made it in his own door.

“Yuri?”

Mila was up. In the kitchen, in her pajamas, looking at him like he was a wild animal. He stared at her, and thought about the last few weeks and then he was sobbing and sinking to the floor. Mila was there in a second holding him, and he spilled the whole terrible story.

==

Yuri woke up slowly the next morning, his head aching. He could hear music playing, and Mila’s voice singing along from the direction of the kitchen. He closed his eyes wondering if he’d be able to go back to sleep, when he heard the door open and a bright voice greet Mila. A moment later his bedroom door was flung open and he was tackled by one very enthusiastic Guang Hong Ji.

Yuri yelped at the elbow to his ribs, but a minute later Mila had jumped on the bed with them, and they were doing their best to smother him in the biggest bear hug he’d ever been part of. Yuri squirmed and laughed, and eventually they had gotten themselves settled in his bed. 

“Ji, I thought you weren’t supposed to be back until next week.” His best friend shot him a grin from where he was laying on Yuri’s stomach.

“Yeah, but Mila called me last night and it sounded like you needed me here more.” Yuri gaped, looking between the two, who were both grinning at them. 

“You called..Mila we were up half the night! When did you even have time to call?”

“Right after you went to bed. Ji packed up and left right away.”

“Yeah, we talked it over last night and between the two of us we can make sure you’re never alone at the cafe again, at least until classes start.”

Yuri couldn’t stop it. He started crying again, and this time there were two pairs of arms holding him.

==

Yuri, Mila and Guang Hong had eventually moved out to the living room, where they had shoved him into the middle and made sure one of them was cuddling him at all times. It was a little embarrassing, but Yuri was also deeply relieved at the show of support. Mila was currently in the kitchen making them some lunch, and Yuri and Guang Hong were still curled up on the couch watching Mythbusters reruns when a phone rang. 

_One, don't pick up the phone_   
_You know he's only calling 'cause he's drunk and alone_

“Mila, your phone is ringing.” Yuri called to the kitchen. 

“I changed some of your settings, that’s yours!” She called back. Yuri scoffed and pulled his phone out of his pocket, and looked at the display to see it was ringing, Beka flashing at him from the screen. He hesitated, then declined the call. He wasn’t ready for that conversation. His phone beeped with an incoming text a moment later and he turned it off and shoved it under the couch cushions. He could only deal with one disaster at a time. 

==

For the first few days, everything was fine. Mila and Guang Hong made sure he was never alone at work. He continued to reject Otabek’s calls and didn’t even bother reading his messages. He thought about it, spent hours with his chest tight staring at his phone convincing himself to call, but in the end he decided not to. He couldn’t really fault Otabek, he had done exactly what Yuri had asked of him, but still the thought of what he had seen made him sick to his stomach. In the end it was better to let it all go. 

Yuri had been picking up all the hours he could at the cafe in preparation for school to start back up. He liked to have a little chunk set aside in his savings for the coming semester, and so far things had been back to normal. Irina hadn’t been calling or stopping by ever since Yuri threatened to call the cops on her, and he was hoping she was finally gone for good. 

Yuri was working the dinner shift, when he saw his coworker Aubrey go flying into the bathroom. He grimaced, knowing that he couldn’t be good. He gave her a few minutes, then knocked before propping the door open a couple inches to ask if she was okay. The sounds of vomiting reached him, and he closed the door before he could smell it.

Yuri washed his hands, then quickly checked on all of the guests in the cafe. By the time he was done, Aubrey had made it out of the bathroom and was in the back office looking about a minute away from death. He stayed back, not wanting whatever disease she had, and ordered her to go home. Aubrey didn’t even have the energy to argue, just called her girlfriend for a ride and put her head down. Yuri winced and made a mental note to disinfect the office before he left. 

He walked back into the main dining area. There were no new customers, so he ducked under the counter to grab the glass cleaner. When he stood up, it was to Otabek standing on the other side of the door, clearly debating if he should come in or not.

Otabek looked up and they made eye contact through the glass. Yuri gave Otabek his best blank look, then deliberately turned his back on him and walked into the kitchen. When he looked out to the front a few minutes later, Otabek was gone. 

==

With the suddenness of Aubrey’s illness, and the appearance of Otabek, Yuri had completely forgotten to let Mila or Guang Hong know he’d be at work alone until Viktor came in to help with the bar rush. In the meantime the cafe was empty and Yuri was trying to get ahead on the prep work for the night. He cursed when he heard the door open as he was carrying another box of cups from the basement and dropped the box onto the floor of the kitchen while he rushed to the front. He fixed his fake customer service smile on his face to greet the customers, but hesitated when he saw the group waiting for him. 

These were not typical customers for the business. There were three men standing in front of the counter, all significantly larger and dirtier than Yuri. The one in the middle had his arm over Irina’s shoulder. Yuri dropped his smile and moved a little closer to the the door. He didn’t know what this was, but he was sure it wasn’t good.

“You’ve already been told you’re not welcome here.” Yuri directed his comment to Irina, but Yuri kept eyes on the men with her. She barely seemed to notice him, clearly strung out on something. The man next to her chuckled and wrapped his arm a little tighter around her. 

“No need to be so hostile. We don’t want any problems. I just came down for my money is all.”

“I’m sorry, your what?” Yuri looked at the man fully. He was really hoping this wasn’t going where he thought it was. He noticed one of the men had moved to the front door and was standing in front of it. The other had come to the edge of the counter. He took another step back towards the kitchen, getting ready to run. 

“Well you see, I fronted Irina here some medicine that she really needed. She couldn’t pay me up front, but she promised her son would be good for it and brought us here. So are you good for it son?”

“I’m sorry there’s been a mistake. That’s not my mother.” Yuri said coolly, tipping his chin in Irina’s direction. 

The man sighed, dropping his arm from her shoulders. He waved his hand and the man at the front locked the door before moving closer to the counter while the third stepped behind the counter.

“That’s really unfortunate, because I need that money. So if you won’t help us, I’m just going to have to take it.”

The man at the counter jumped forward but Yuri was ready and bashed him over the head with a coffee carafe he’d sneakily managed to grab. He ran for the kitchen and grabbed his cell phone from his pocket trying to get to the call button for 911. He’d just connected the call when he was tackled from behind. 

Yuri rolled over and fought back against the man who had landed on him. He did his best to yell for help and the name of the cafe, but he had no idea if it made it through the phone. He got in a pretty good hit, but then he was struck in the side by a hard shoe. Yuri was dizzy and the man sitting on him used that moment to pin his arms down. Yuri struggled but was kicked again in the head. Now that he was pinned two of the men took turns kicking and hitting him while the lead guy supervised Irina emptying the register. He fought to keep his eyes open, but eventually the world went fuzzy then dark. 

==

Yuri groaned as he woke up. His head was killing him. Mila must have talked him into going out. He tried to sit up and was stopped by two hands on his chest.

“Easy there kiddo.”

Yuri forced his eyes open at the unfamiliar voice, and found himself on the floor of the cafe. He scrunched his nose trying to figure out why he was there, when he remembered Irina and the men. He jerked up again trying to look around, and the man that Yuri now realized was a paramedic held him in place and soothed him again. Yuri allowed himself to be stilled and looked around from where he was. He could see some police officers standing around, and another paramedic on his other side. 

“I’m the owner, let me in!”

The hysterical cry came from the front, and Viktor managed to push his way back a moment later. He dropped onto the floor beside Yuri, and he could see tears in his eyes and Viktor’s hands trembled over him. 

“I’m okay Viktor.” he mumbled, already embarrassed. “Can I sit up?” he asked the paramedics, and with their help he was eased into a sitting position. The paramedics were checking him over for injuries, and Viktor was an absolute wreck beside him. Yuri was tired and his head hurt. He found himself closing his eyes, and was jerked awake by one of the paramedics. 

The rest of the day was a blur. He gave his statement to the officers, lowering his head in shame when he revealed to them and Viktor that it was his mother who had caused this. Yuri refused to ride in an ambulance, but Viktor forced him into his own car and he got checked out at the hospital. His phone had been broken in the scuffle, so it was a pretty good shock to Mila when Viktor dropped off Yuri at their apartment. She’d immediately yelled at him for not calling her and then called Guang Hong to come over and help yell at him more. She’d ended it by tucking him into the couch and making him tea while crying. Finally he was allowed to rest. 

He woke up a couple days later to find Viktor in his living room, and he wondered when everything was going to stop feeling like a weird ass dream every time he woke up. His mouth was dry, and he wished he had some water. His movement had caught Viktor’s eye, and he was over there in a second to help Yuri sit up. He handed over a water bottle sitting on an end table and Yuri gulped it down gratefully. He sat there after, feeling awkward, but not quite knowing what to say. 

“I wish you had told me she was your mother Yuratchka. We could have taken precautions.”

Yuri lowered his head in shame. He had never anticipated that Irina would come in and rob the store, but he should have warned Viktor after the first time he chased her off. He didn’t even know how much damage had been done to the store. 

“I’m sorry. I understand if you want to fire me. You should use my last paycheck to cover the damages, and I’ll pay you back once I start working again, I promise.”

“Oh Yuratchka, you silly boy, what are you saying?” Viktor moved forward and pulled Yuri into a bear hug, and Yuri was baffled.

“But the store was robbed, and things were broken..”

“Yuratchka, I don’t care about that. You were hurt! It could have been even worse if you hadn’t managed to call 911 and get the officers there so quickly. If you had told me what was going on we could have taken precautions, made sure you weren’t scheduled alone ever, had other businesses on the lookout.” 

Viktor hugged him tighter and Yuri hesitatingly returned it. He still wasn’t sure what to think. He didn’t think he was getting fired at least. Viktor held him a moment more before scooting back and making sure to look Yuri in the eyes. 

“Now, you are going to take as much time as you need to recover. I don’t want you back at work if you’re still hurting. And if something like this ever happens again you will come to me right away, understood?” Viktor waited for Yuri to nod, then pulled out an envelope. “Now for the other reason I stopped by. All your coworkers and the other businesses in the neighborhood are very upset about what happened to you. We wanted to make sure you were taken care of in the meantime. We put together a small collection to help cover your medical expenses, and I don’t want to hear any arguments about taking it.”

Yuri gaped at the envelope shoved into his lap. There was a wad of cash, and cards and notes from his coworkers, Lilia, the Katsukis, even a few regulars of the business and other students from his dance classes. He eyes welled up, and this time it was Yuri who pulled Viktor into a hug. There was no way he could ever repay this, but maybe this wasn’t about that. Maybe Yuri had a bigger family than he realized.

==

Yuri’s recovery and dealing with the fallout of the robbery took up his days for the next week. He filed an official restraining order against Irina, had more interviews with the police, and another appointment with the doctor before Viktor would let him come back to work. Mila had gotten him a new phone, complete with a new number in case Irina decided to try calling him ever again, and informed him she had sent out his new number to all of his contacts. It wasn’t until he finally had returned to his routine days later that he realized he hadn’t had a single call or text from Beka since he’d shunned him the day of the robbery. With a sinking heart, Yuri realized he’d finally succeeded in chasing him off for good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks to the glorious thoughtsappear for her beta work.


	12. twelve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mila spills a secret, and Yuri decides it's time he and Otabek talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I am aware I suck and the wait on this has been forever. I'm sorry. I love you if you're still here reading.

Mila waited until Guang Hong left for the night before she tried to talk to Yuri again. She put on her pajamas and crawled into bed, but she didn’t sleep. She waited until he’d turned down his music for the night, then waited a little longer until she heard him get up to use the bathroom. She snuck out into the hallway and stood there, blocking Yuri’s way back to his room and close enough to the exit she could cut him off that way as well. 

Yuri exited the bathroom and gave her a nasty look, and she thought he was going to push past her for a second, but instead he turned to the kitchen and grabbed a beer before throwing himself on the couch. Mila waited a minute to see what he would do before she grabbed her own drink and joined him. 

“I don’t know what more you can say Mila. You know how hard I tried to move past this, and you just watched me.” Mila didn’t say anything, just nodded knowing she deserved all of Yuri’s ire. “You deliberately made sure I had a new number after the robbery, and then you made sure not to send it to Otabek.”

“I know. I just thought-”

“Yeah, you thought I needed time, I know. And I probably did. But you didn’t give me time. You set it up so Otabek and I would both think we didn’t want each other. I just don’t understand why.”

“That’s not all I did.”

Yuri looked up at her, eyes sharp in his face, and Mila took a gulp of her drink to fortify herself. 

“It was after the robbery, after I changed your number. He thought you’d blocked his number and wanted to try talking to you again, and he showed up here a couple times. I chased him off before you ever saw him, and told him you didn’t want to see him anymore. That’s when he started showing up at the cafe, but you always made sure he didn’t see you or talk to you there either.”

There was a heaviness to the silence between them, and Mila wondered if she’d just lost her best friend. Finally, she heard a sniffle in the darkness, and Yuri scooted over to rest his head on her shoulder. 

“Wow, when you fuck up you really go all the way with it.” 

“I’m sorry.”

“I know. Just, let’s drop it for now. I get that you were trying to look out for me, but you went about it pretty backwards. We’ll talk more tomorrow okay?”

Mila nodded her silent assent, and Yuri surprised her with a rare kiss on her cheek before he yawned and went back to his room. She wiped the tears from her eyes and finished her own beer before she did the same. She would give him anything he wanted tomorrow. This time she would help him in the right way.

==

They didn't talk the next day. Or the day after that. Yuri was gone before she got up, and if he was home in the evening he locked himself in his room. It was Wednesday when Mila came home from class and found Yuri preparing dinner in the kitchen, a bottle of vodka already sitting out. 

Mila set her backpack in her room and changed into running shorts and her favorite oversized hoodie. Yuri flicked a spoon at her when she offered to help in the kitchen, so she made herself useful by setting out some shot glasses and pouring cups of lemonade. Yuri had music playing, something soft that he hummed under his breath while he finished making their dinner. 

Yuri slid the food onto plates and brought them over. They sat on opposite ends of the couch, and it was silent for a few moments while they both pretended to eat. Mila watched Yuri from the corner of her eyes, nervous enough to vomit. 

Yuri finally pushed his food away and reached for the vodka. He uncapped it and took a swallow, grimacing slightly before putting it back on the table. He looked up to meet her eyes, and asked her once more.

“Why?”

Mila brought him through the whole thing. How he had fallen so quickly into his relationship with Otabek. How he denied it was even a relationship, kept pretending they were just a fling. How upset he had been when he first learned about Otabek’s marijuana use, and how he’d sacrificed his own feelings on it to keep Otabek. Yuri tried to object at that point, saying he’d talked about it with Otabek, and Mila cut him off.

“Look me in the eye and tell me you weren’t bothered by it Yuratchka. Sure, you were stressed about Irina, but if it hadn’t been that it would’ve been something else. You started shutting Otabek out the second you saw him with Seung Gil at that party.”

Yuri’s jaw visibly tensed, and he looked intently at his hands for a moment. Finally, he gave a short nod and reached for the bottle of vodka again. This time after he took his swallow, he passed the bottle to Mila and she took the biggest gulp she could handle. Mila set the bottle down, and she finished her story.

Irina’s reappearance. The subsequent stress Yuri had found himself under. The endless fighting with Otabek, how even though Yuri hadn’t been confiding in her yet she had known something was wrong. And then after the robbery at the cafe, he'd had so much else going on, and he was already ready to snap so she tried to ease the burden, but she never expected the situation to spiral as far as it had

“I know I handled it badly.” She said, staring down at her clenched fists so Yuri didn't see the tears in her eyes, “I just wanted to protect you.”

It was quiet for a few minutes, and she didn't look up, waiting for Yuri’s judgement. Finally there was a soft touch on her shoulder, and she glanced up to see the blank look on Yuri's face. Her heart clenched, and she was positive that she had ruined one of the best friendships she's ever had. 

“Thank you.” Yuri told her softly, and it took a few minutes for the words to register, but when they did her mouth dropped. Yuri almost laughed at her expression, just a small huff in his breathing, but he contained it and kept his gaze on hers. 

“Yeah, the way you went about things was really backwards, but I know you were just trying to look out for me. And you were right, even though I didn’t want to admit it. I wasn’t handling things the right way with Otabek. I just wish you had _talked_ to me, instead of going behind my back.”

Mila is crying by this point, sniffling and wiping her nose on the sleeve of her hoodie. It’s disgusting, but she can’t be bothered to get up and break this fragile bubble they’ve found themselves in. Across from her, Yuri has tears leaking from his eyes as well. 

“I was so scared.” She finally admitted, “I knew I messed up, and I didn’t know how to tell you, and it was worse the longer I waited. I didn’t want to lose you.”

“Mila,” Yuri said softly, reaching out to grasp her hand, “I won’t say I wasn’t mad, but you’re my family in a way that no one else has ever been except my grandpa and Ji. You’re not going to lose me.”

Mila finally lost it, and broke down into full blown sobs. Yuri pulled her across the couch into his chest, and she cried against his shoulder. She’s clutching onto him, and he’s crying into her hair. It takes a long time, but it ends with them cuddled together on the couch, relishing the feeling of peace that comes with having finally purged all the lies between them. 

==

The next day Yuri and Mila have their anatomy lab, and they’re a little quieter than normal, still raw from the night before. The mood lasts for the rest of the week, and they’ve only said the bare minimum to each other by the time the weekend rolls around. Mila is heading out of town for her mother’s birthday and Yuri is curled up on the couch with a textbook. Mila stops at the door, her bag over her shoulder, and takes him in. It’s clear she has something to say, and Yuri tensed just the slightest bit, not sure what’s coming. 

“Yuri, I know I fucked things up for you before, but I think the thing you’ve been ignoring in all of this is that Otabek’s friends came to us because he was hurt too. Maybe you can’t fix what happened before, and that’s my fault, but maybe it wouldn’t be the worst thing to try and talk with him. At the very least maybe you can both find some closure.”

Yuri didn’t say anything, but his posture shifted, hunched down further into himself. Mila waited, but when it was clear there was no answer coming, she stepped forward to ruffle Yuri’s hair, before she left the apartment, the door clicking into place behind her. 

Yuri sat there for a long time, his eyes on the book he was no longer reading while his thoughts swirled through his mind.

==

“I think we need to talk.”

They were the first words Yuri had spoken to him in months, and Otabek was frozen. He’d always wondered what he would say if he ever had the chance to speak with Yuri again, but he’d never pictured it like this. 

His silence was getting to Yuri, and he was shifting in place, and Otabek could see he was getting angry. When Otabek was done being shocked he was going to really ponder how Yuri had the audacity to be angry after he was the one who walked out on Otabek all those months ago, and just showed up out of the blue demanding to talk, but that was for later. 

Otabek opened his mouth to say something, he would settle for anything really, when the silence was broken by a series of loud moans and the rhythmic squeaking of a bed frame. Otabek made a choking sound, and Yuri’s head turned as he gaped at the door. Before Otabek could move, Yuri pushed past him and began vehemently kicking Leo’s bedroom door.

“Ji Guang Hong you goddamned slut, this better not be why you weren’t answering my texts! Get out here or I swear to god I will record you and send it to your Nana!”

The moaning and squeaking stopped, and Otabek can hear someone scrambling behind the door before it opens and Guang Hong leapt out clad in only a pair of boxers and one of Leo’s shirts to tackle Yuri. Guang Hong grinned brightly, while Yuri scowled at him and crossed his arms. 

Guang Hong looped his arm over Yuri’s shoulder, and pulled Yuri down so they could have a quick whispered conversation. Yuri continued to scowl throughout, but Guang Hong is smiling and gesturing in Otabek’s direction.

Otabek still hasn’t managed to speak, caught off guard by all the events unfolding around him. Finally some kind of conclusion seemed to be reached, and Guang Hong darted back into Leo’s room, only to emerge a moment later dragging a fully dressed Leo behind him. Guang Hong pulls Leo out the door, and waves goodbye to both of them.

“Good luck! Remember Leo keeps extra lube and condoms in his room if you need them!”

Yuri flips them off, then turns to Otabek. His gaze is dark, and his scowl hasn’t managed to let up yet. Otabek thought about trying to kiss Yuri’s bad mood away, then remembered he doesn’t have that permission anymore. The silence was heavy as they looked at each other. 

“Mila told me that you came by the apartment.”

It’s an unexpected place for Yuri to start, and Otabek who was prepared for a totally different conversation takes a minute to catch up, then he inclined his head. Yuri huffed, and scrubbed at his eyes, before he leaned against the wall and tried again.

“No, like she just told me a couple days ago. I didn’t know until then.”

Oh. That’s unexpected. Otabek pondered this new information, wondering what it changed about the past few months. 

“Aren’t you going to fucking say anything?” Yuri spit out, and Otabek realized he still hadn’t said a word the entire time Yuri had been there.

“I guess, I’m not sure what to say. I didn’t expect to see you here like this. It’s a little...disconcerting?”

Yuri deflated at this, and his arms wrapped tighter around himself. Otabek hated seeing him retreat, but he knew that if he were to step forward and try to comfort Yuri it would only end in a fight. Honestly, he doesn’t think he ever truly made it under Yuri’s guard. It’s a fine line to balance, one that will hopefully result in Yuri staying to speak with him instead of running away in a rage all over again. 

“Why are you here?” Otabeks whispered, sitting heavily on the couch where he can only see Yuri out of the corner of his eye instead of being confronted with his presence. 

“I found out there was a lot that happened this summer that I didn’t know. And I think there’s a lot that happened to me that you don’t know. I wanted to clear the air I guess.”

Otabek would laugh, but there’s nothing funny here. Instead he wants to scream and rage and yell at Yuri, to demand answers. What could have happened to make him react so negatively? Why didn’t Otabek matter enough to him to do this sooner? Instead he keeps himself in his spot on the couch looking at the ground. 

“I missed you.” he whispers to the beige carpet, and he can see Yuri stiffen where he’s still standing. Yuri doesn’t say anything, but then he moves and he’s sitting on the other end of the couch, facing Otabek.

“I’m right here.” Yuri finally murmurs, “Now let’s see if you still feel that way when we’re done.”


	13. thirteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally, they sit down and communicate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is basically the end folks! I'm pretty sure there will be one more chapter to wrap everything up, and then that's it! Thanks for sticking with me!

Yuri curled himself up into a ball on the couch, arms wrapped around his legs, and cheek resting on his knees. Otabek hasn’t looked up from the ground. There’s so much to say, and Yuri has no idea how to say it. Mila has known him so long she’s lived most of the story with him. Yuri had been drunk and angry when he spilled the whole mess to Guang Hong, and that had been after months of friendship. He’s never just told someone like this. 

“Do you remember that night, when I came over to your apartment after I saw you with Seung Gil the first time? When you fucked me in your jacket?”

Otabek tensed, and Yuri was sure this wasn’t where he expected the conversation to start, but he nodded slowly and glanced at Yuri out of the corner of his eye. They’ve decided this will go easier if they didn’t look at each other, and they kept to their respective ends of the couch. 

“When I went to work the next day my mother was waiting for me at the cafe. I hadn’t seen her in almost ten years.”

Otabek jerked a little at this, and Yuri remembered the bits of his family life Otabek had shared with him. Otabek had an adoring mother, a supportive, involved father, and a pile of older siblings who were his biggest defenders and worst tormentors in equal turns. Yuri’s family wouldn’t make sense to him, and Yuri had a lifelong habit of keeping his story firmly to himself. 

“I’ve never had a dad. Don’t even have a clue who he could be. It was just me and my mom, and she had a lot of problems, drugs being her biggest one. If she had a job she lost it over her behavior. If she had money, it went towards her next fix. One day she took me to a sitter, and then she just didn’t come back. I ended up in foster care for a couple weeks until I went to live with my Grandpa. She called and wrote a few times, but she pretty much only did that when she needed money. Eventually she just stopped. I honestly wasn’t even sure she was still alive.”

Yuri held up his hand, shaking his head against the pitying look that had rapidly developed on Otabek’s face. 

“Don’t you dare give me that look. I don’t want your pity, and I don’t need you to feel sorry for me. I had a great life with my Grandpa. I just need you to understand why this was such a shock for me.”

“Okay Yura.” Otabek answered softly, “I won’t pity you, I’m just sorry you didn’t have the mother you deserved.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Yuri shuffled himself, turning to face Otabek slightly more as he continued, “Once she showed up the first time she wouldn’t go away. She kept popping by work, always managing to find the times I was there alone. She never sticks around long, and I just wanted to keep her interest until she left so she didn’t bother my grandpa. She started asking for money, or asking me to leave the till unsupervised so she could take money from there. I threatened to call the police, and eventually I told Mila and Guang Hong what was up and they made sure one of them was always at the cafe if I was the only person working.”

“But not me.” Otabek interjected softly, and Yuri looked at his feet.

“But not you.” he agreed, “I wasn’t ready to tell you about her. It’s something I try not to talk about. And we were fighting all the time anyways-”

“You mean you were picking fights all the time because you were upset about her being back.” Otabek interrupted again, and this time there was a bit of bite in his voice.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

Neither of them spoke, and Yuri wondered if he should leave, if this was the final straw, but Otabek just rubbed his eyes and nodded at Yuri to continue.

“Well, one night my coworker had to go home sick suddenly and I forgot to call Mila or Guang Hong and I was there alone. Irina, that’s her name, showed up with some men she owed money to. She’d told them her son was good for it,” and only Yuri could make the word son sound so vile and bitter, “but I wasn’t going to give them anything so they beat me up and robbed the store for it.”

Otabek was horrified, but Yuri was just resigned. He’d had a long time to get used to Irina being a piece of shit, and he was used to her disappointing him. He was more concerned for Otabek’s reaction. 

‘When did this happen?” Otabek looked over Yuri, obviously checking for signs of a beating that was now months past.

“Right after I saw Seung Gil at your apartment. Actually, I thought I saw you standing outside the cafe earlier that day?”

“Yeah I was there one day and you did a pretty good job of shunning me, and oh my god that was the day you were attacked? I was there!”

“Don’t get your panties in a twist Altin.” Yuri had the audacity to roll his eyes at Otabek, “If it wasn’t that day it would’ve been another. I told you she’d been watching me there. There’s nothing you could have done. I’m just glad that was a real memory and not the concussion confusing things.”

They didn’t say anything while Otabek struggled to absorb what he’d been told. Yuri waited patiently for his reaction. He’d thrown a lot at Otabek,and it wasn’t really everything, but it was the worst of what he needed to know for now. 

“That’s when you blocked my number,” Otabek finally said, “because of your mom?”

Yuri winced, and his expression was a mix of embarrassed and irritated. They’d managed to scoot closer, and they’re almost to the middle of the couch facing each other. 

“Not exactly. My phone was broken in the robbery, so Mila got me a new one. She’s the one who blocked your number, and then chased you off when you showed up.”

“But why would she do that?” Otabek’s voice was a little too loud, but Yuri didn’t flinch. 

“She thought she was protecting me.”

“And you believe her?” Otabek was incredulous, even louder, and Yuri still didn’t back away, but instead he looked angry. 

“She’s my friend. She was looking out for me.”

Otabek stood up and began to pace the room. He was clearly upset based on the way his teeth were grinding and his hands were clenched into fists at his side. Yuri watched him from the couch, not moving, but the tension in his body was signaling that he was ready to fight or run, whatever was the better option. 

“All this time…” Otabek trailed off and just stared at Yuri, and he’s so confused. Yuri met his eyes and let him look his fill. Otabek let out something that might have been a laugh, but it was too sharp, and then he slumped back into a chair across the living room so he couldface Yuri. “Why didn’t you contact me?”

Yuri shrugged and shrank in on himself a little before he answered, “It was a little bit of a mess those first few days after the robbery. I was dealing with my injuries and sleeping a lot on top of dealing with doctors and the police. It took me a while to realize I hadn’t been hearing from you anymore. And at that point I just figured it was too late. I still had the same issues with drugs that I’d always had, and I just figured it was the better option.”

“So if you’d known I was still trying to reach out, that I’d been calling and trying to see you, would that have changed anything?”

Yuri hesitated, and that was all the answer Otabek needed based on the bitter smile on his face. 

“I appreciate you telling me all this Yuri, but I think I need some time to think on it.”

“Of course, but Otabek? I’m going to leave my new number if you want to talk more. I promise that you’re not blocked anymore. ” 

Otabek managed to nod at him, but he didn’t watch him leave. This Yuri, the one who had been contained and patient wasn’t the one he knew. He wanted to see the Yuri who was sarcastic, and snappy, and he wasn’t in the right frame of mind to realize that Yuri had only been calm because he’d already raged and had time to think.

The folded up notecard Yuri had left sat on the table and mocked him. He didn’t open it to read the number inside, but he shoved it in his wallet for safekeeping. He’d waited for months to talk to Yuri again. He could wait a little longer. 

==

The text came three days later. 

Beka (14:18): _hey you open anytime this week?_

Yuri (15:43): _sorry was in lab but yeah i have the opening shift saturday should be done by 3_

Beka (18:07): _can i meet you at the cafe? I’d like to talk a little more_

Yuri (18:19): _sure i’ll see you then_

==

When Yuri left work Saturday Otabek was waiting outside in a leather jacket and shades on his face. Yuri handed him a ridiculously sweet latte that he knew used to be Otabek’s favorite. Otabek drank it, so clearly he didn’t mind. 

They walked in silence, and Otabek guided Yuri toward a park a few blocks down. It was cold enough that it was almost empty save for a few very determined joggers, and they sat down on the swing set. Otabek was still, but Yuri pushed himself back and forth gently while he waited for Otabek to begin.

“Where is your mother now?”

“Oh, she’s uh, she’s back in jail. She went to my grandpa’s a few weeks back and attacked him. She’s going to be held on the bond violation for a while, and we both have restraining orders against her. It wasn’t exactly her first offense either.”

“Is it bad if I say I’m glad she’s locked up where she can’t hurt you again?”

Yuri laughed at that, “Of course not. I say the same thing all the time.”

“Okay.” Otabek was silent again, and Yuri relaxed against a swing. He felt better the past few days, now that he knew the truth and had shared his side with Otabek. He felt bad Otabek was probably suffering through the knowledge, but he knew that Mila was right when she said it might be good for them to talk.

“I wish..I wish I had known all of this sooner Yuri. And I understand why you didn’t tell me, but maybe that was the issue. We kind of jumped into things and we barely knew each other.”

“I know. You’re right. I just, I didn’t want to know you if that makes sense? I couldn’t even admit to myself that I liked you for more than a fuck, so I wanted to keep some distance. You made it hard on me though, with the way you treated me. Mila kept telling me I was an idiot.” Yuri kind of shook his head and chuckled at himself, but Otabek frowned at him.

“You’ve really just forgiven her for interfering in your life that way and lying to you about it?”

Yuri sighed at that, and gave Otabek a searching look before he spoke. It was clear this was something he spent a lot of time thinking about himself.

“The thing is Otabek, you have a big family, one who’s always been there for you. Me, I’ve had Grandpa and that’s it. But Mila has been my friend since I was a kid, and even though there’s no relation she’s my family. Am I mad, sure. But she’s still my sister at the end of it, and there’s not a lot I wouldn’t forgive her for.”

“I want…” and Otabek trailed off conflicted before he took a big breath and continued, “I still want you in my life, but I don’t think I could be in a relationship with you right now. I just think maybe we need to back off and actually get to know each other and see how that goes. Your best friend is dating mine, so I feel like we’ll have to interact at some point and I don’t want it to be awkward.”

“You’ve literally eaten my ass in front of my roommate, nothing will ever be more awkward than that.” Yuri deadpanned and Otabek choked a little on his drink. Yuri had practically shoved his fist in his mouth to try and contain his giggles. 

“You’re a dick.” Otabek informed him, and Yuri giggled harder and fell backwards off the swing. He lay gasping on the ground and Otabek pondered leaving him there, but finally he held his hand out to help him up.

“So Yuri, are you going to be my friend or not?”


	14. fourteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What comes next?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's the ending guys! Thank you so much for sticking with me!

_**Two Weeks Later**_

 

“It’s weird right? Like do I get him something? What kind of birthday gift says sorry I fucked up before, let’s be friends, but your dick is amazing so can I have that please?” Yuri’s voice was a little muffled; he was helping Guang Hong clean and was laying on the ground pulling dirty laundry out from under the bed. Guang Hong was supposed to be helping, but was playing on his phone instead.

“What about these?” he offered, shoving the phone into Yuri’s face as soon as he sat up, “I’ll even help you make the mold for them.”

The screen showed chocolate candies shaped like assholes, and Yuri sputtered and swore at Guang Hong before throwing a handful of dirty socks into his face. Yuri stomped out, and left Guang Hong laughing on the bed.

“So that’s a maybe?” Guang Hong called out, and couldn’t even feel regretful as he heard the door slam. He hadn’t really wanted to clean anyways.

 

_**Seven Months Later**_

 

“Okay, what the signal if you need to leave?”

“Mila-”

“What’s the signal or I’ll carry you home.”

Yuri sighed at his friend and rolled his eyes. Yuri had forgiven Mila for the most part for lying to him during his relationship with Otabek, but it still left things strained between them. They weren’t as close as they used to be, and Yuri had moved into Guang Hong’s apartment and sublet to Sara, another nursing student Mila knew from school. It was an all around win. He had some much needed space from Mila, and since his father paid for his apartment, Guang Hong refused to let Yuri chip in on rent. The extra income allowed him to save up and cut his work hours down a little bit. Mila had developed a crush on her new roommate, but refused to act on it while they lived together. Really, the only negative had been to Yuri’s ears as he suffered through Guang Hong and Leo’s sex life. 

“If I get uncomfortable, I’ll pretend to be strangling myself, because that’s how your smothering makes me feel.” Yuri fixed Mila with his best dead eyed look, and immediately felt bad at the way her face dropped, “Look Baba, I can handle this. We’re just stopping in to make Ji happy. Don’t overcompensate and try too hard now.”

Mila sighed softly, and tipped her head to lean against his shoulder briefly, “You’re right. Of course. I’m sorry. Let’s just have some fun.”

They were at Bella and JJ’s apartment. Bella and Guang Hong had put together a small party celebrating Leo, JJ, Bella, and Otabek graduating the prior week, and Mila and Yuri had promised they would stop in for at least two drinks. It wasn’t really as awkward as Mila made it out to be, for Yuri at least. He and Otabek had put in the effort to be friends over the past few months, even if they only hung out in public places to avoid any temptation. Yuri still thought Otabek possessed the greatest dick in the world, and he knew he wasn’t imagining the way Otabek’s eyes sometimes darkened and focused on his lips. 

Yuri pounded on the door to announce their presence, before turning the knob and stomping inside. Mila slunk in behind him, still a little jumpy. Otabek, and by extension JJ and Bella had never quite forgiven her for the part she’d played in the disastrous ending of Otabek and Yuri’s relationship and the hurt it had caused Otabek. Leo, who had spent more time with her because of Guang Hong, was more forgiving. It was still nerve wracking enough that Yuri had offered to walk over with her, and they’d both had a couple drinks before walking over. 

They found Bella in the kitchen, and she hugged Yuri before she directed a cool nod at Mila. She had grabbed more disposable cups and a bag of ice from the freezer and scoffed at Yuri when he tried to carry them for her. She led them out behind the building where the guests of honor were throwing all of their old papers and notes into a fire pit and cheering. 

“Isn't JJ going back to school for his master's? Should he really be burning _all_ his notes?”

Bella laughed at Yuri and split the ice between two coolers full of drinks, before she grabbed herself a beer, “He has all his notes and papers backed up digitally in at least three different places. This is just for fun.”

“Maybe we can get Otabek to burn that outfit too,” Mila muttered, then flushed at Bella’s look, but Yuri snickered and Bella caved and grinned as well. In all fairness it was a truly hideous outfit. Otabek was wearing jean shorts, that had been cut off well above the knee and a rainbow patterned poncho looking shirt. 

“I know. It’s hideous. Normally I don’t let him dress himself, but I was hoping he’d ruin that particular outfit,” Bella muttered, inspecting flawless nails. 

Guang Hong noticed them and whooped as he jumped straight over the firepit to come hug both of them. He managed it without injuring himself, although it looked like Leo was having a heart attack behind him. Guang Hong was already well on his way to drunk, and both Yuri and Mila immediately put an arm around him to keep him upright and from doing anything else too stupid. 

With Guang Hong there to ease the tension between Mila and Otabek’s friends, the party became a lot more fun. Guang Hong shoved drinks in their hands, and made them play a drinking version of testicle toss with him. After a few games, and far more than the two drinks they had promised, Mila and Yuri were almost as drunk as Guang Hong and had happily settled around the firepit. 

Guang Hong had been poured in Leo’s lap, and the two were disgustingly cute as they cuddled and whispered into each other’s ears. JJ and Bella were attempting to make s’mores, but were mostly just making a mess. Yuri had sprawled out in the grass and planted his head in Mila’s lap. She was absently playing with his hair, and having a surprisingly civil conversation with Otabek about his job offer in the case management department in a nearby children’s hospital. Yuri listened just enough to make sure it remained polite, but was content as he laid back and enjoyed the warmth of the fire. 

Yuri felt Mila stiffen below him, but her voice remained friendly and calm when she spoke, “Hey Seung Gil. Didn't expect you here.”

Yuri forced himself not to tense up, and leaned his head back to see Seung Gil standing between Mila and Otabek with a faintly bemused look on his face. This gave Yuri the view of Seung Gil's very shapely legs seemingly stretching forever above him, and that was far more unsettling than his appearance had been. Yuri made a note to himself to get laid, and deliberately shut his eyes and turned his head away. Yuri swore he heard a low chuckle above him, but then he heard Seung Gil move away and strike up a conversation with Bella and JJ. 

 

_**Two Weeks Later**_

Yuri and Guang Hong had pushed the coffee table and couch against the wall so they could do yoga in the living room. Guang Hong had insisted he needed to be more flexible with a wink. Yuri had shuddered and pretended to vomit, but he was glad for a partner. Guang Hong was still letting Yuri live with him virtually rent free, but now he made Yuri hang out with him a lot more since Leo had moved home temporarily while he looked for a job. This weekend Leo would be coming to visit, and Yuri was pretty sure Guang Hong was just hoping to be bent over suggestively when he arrived. 

The knock on the door finally came, and Yuri rolled his eyes to himself when Guang Hong immediately twisted so his ass was facing the door. Leo had his own key, so the door opened a second later and Leo’s voice called out.

“Babe? I have compan…”

Leo’s voice trailed off at the sight of Guang Hong, ass up in the air and in the tightest yoga pants he could find. Yuri wondered if he could go hide at Mila’s to avoid the gorilla sex noises that were definitely coming when he noticed another person at the doorway. It was Seung Gil. Sonuvabitch. 

Yuri eyed up Guang Hong and Leo, and decided they were only seconds away from stripping in the living room and screwing on the couch which he really didn’t need to see _again_ , so he made a tactical decision. He stood up and grabbed a hoodie from the couch and made sure he had his wallet, keys, and phone. 

“Bye guys, see you later, don’t fuck in my bed!” he called out to the couple who clearly did not give a shit. At the door he felt a moment of pity and hooked his arm through Seung Gil’s dragging him backwards out the door, “Trust me you do not want to be around for what comes next.”

Yuri’s plan hadn’t extended beyond getting out of the apartment, and he found himself arm in arm with Seung Gil in the parking lot with no clue on what to do next. He was frazzled, and he thought he caught a glimpse of amusement on Seung Gil’s face before he tugged his arm free and directed Yuri towards downtown. 

“You want a beer?” Seung Gil offered, and Yuri’s mouth gaped. That faintest flash of amusement was on his face again before it smoothed out and he repeated himself, “A beer? Do you want one? My treat.”

Yuri crossed his arms and sized up Seung Gil. Seung Gil had to know what Yuri thought of him, if not from Yuri’s general disdain, then from Otabek and his friends.

“Why?”

“I think you have some misconceptions about me. But when you were drunk at JJ and Otabek’s party you were fun. Our friends are friends. I’d like things between us to be...calm, at least for that.”

Yuri considered it, but a free beer was a free beer, and he had nowhere else to be. He shrugged and pulled his hoodie on, “Why not. Better be a good beer though.”

 

_**Four Months Later**_

Yuri watched as Seung Gil crushed a pill, then made a line on the back of his text book before snorting it up. He waited until Seung Gil was done and handed him a water bottle. He pretended he didn’t notice Seung Gil’s fingers brushing his when he reached out.

“That’s still the dumbest way to take prescribed medication.” Yuri muttered as Seung Gil cleaned up his book and opened it back up.

“I have a reputation Yuri.” Seung Gil deadpanned, and across the table Sara snorted. 

Beers with Seung Gil had gone surprisingly well. Yuri could admit now that he had been mostly wrong in his impressions of the other man. Seung Gil was guilty of dealing, but only marijuana. The powder Yuri had seen him snorting in Otabek’s apartment was actually a prescribed anxiety medication. He told Yuri most college kids were too dumb to realize it wasn’t actually cocaine, and he seemed more impressive to his buyers that way. Seung Gil rarely even smoked his own product or drank. He just needed the money because college was expensive, which Yuri understood all too well. 

Aside from the dealing, Seung Gil was a model citizen. He was an honor roll pre-med student, worked part time at a grocery store owned by one of his foster families, and volunteered at the same facility Yuri’s grandpa lived in. It turned out he was friends with Sara too, and he and Yuri had started going to her and Mila’s apartment at least weekly to study with the two nursing majors. Normally Guang Hong joined too, but ever since Leo had gotten a job in the adjacent city, he'd only made it about half the time.

Yuri didn’t hear much from Otabek anymore, the occasional snapchat or text, but it seemed he was doing well. He was back in his hometown, having taken the job with the children’s hospital, and based on some of the photos on his social media Yuri suspected he was dating one of his coworkers there. Guang Hong and Mila had both fretted over him when the first picture popped up, but Yuri was really okay. He and Otabek were a closed book, and he could recognize now that what they’d had before hadn’t really been a healthy relationship. He was just glad they were able to move past it to be friends. 

He was happy where he was, happier than he’d ever really been. His friend group had expanded over the past year to include people other than Mila and Guang Hong. His grades were better than ever thanks to their study groups. Viktor had given him a promotion and a raise. Grandpa was healthy. This was all he could have hoped for.

_**Three Months Later**_

Yuri hadn’t missed the way Seung Gil went quiet when Mila and Sara started discussing going home for the holidays. He’d done the same thing far too often, so he waited until they finished studying and were walking down the sidewalk before he brought it up.

“You don’t have any plans for the holidays do you?”

Seung Gil’s face reverted to that blank look he wore around strangers, the one he only wore around Yuri when he was uncomfortable. He tensed and Yuri thought he might not answer, but then he huffed and shrugged at Yuri.

“You’re not the only one with a tragic backstory.”

“I can recognize someone like me.” Yuri shot back, and Seung Gil scoffed at him, “I’m just saying you don’t have to be alone or whatever. Come to Grandpa’s with me. He always makes too much food anyways, and he loves you already. Or if that doesn’t work just come to my place. We’ll order take out and get drunk watching shitty holiday reruns.”

Seung Gil considered it for a moment, the he finally offered Yuri a small smile, and Yuri pretended his heart didn’t stutter, “Yeah okay.”

_**Two Weeks Later**_

Yuri woke up to a horrible hangover, mostly naked, and curled around Seung Gil in his bed. He checked himself over. His head throbbed, and he was definitely going to vomit once he moved, but from what he could tell he and Seung Gil hadn’t fucked. Thank God. He thought Seung Gil was immensely pretty, but he still couldn’t quite get over his friend’s involvement in the campus marijuana trade. On top of that, he’d learned his lesson when it came to drunk hook ups. 

There was a groan next to him, and Seung Gil rolled over to bury his face in Yuri’s shoulder, “Turn the fucking light off.”

“That’s the sun you dumb motherfucker.” Yuri spit out, and immediately regretted the volume of his own voice. 

“I’m going to die.” Seung Gil answered, or at least Yuri thought that’s what he had half whispered into Yuri’s shoulder. His lips brushed over Yuri’s skin, and Yuri was pretty sure he’d be half hard if he didn’t feel so awful. He hadn’t had sex since Otabek. This situation could get tricky real fast. 

The night before slowly came back to Yuri in bits and pieces. Seung Gil had been staying with Yuri since break started. Guang Hong had offered his bedroom, and Seung Gil had looked briefly horrified and decided to sleep on the couch. Last night they’d ordered a pizza and had a couple beers when Seung Gil asked Yuri why he was so skittish around drugs. Yuri had been just tipsy enough that the whole mess came out. Seung Gil had listened stoically, offered the appropriate sympathy, then shared his own story.

Jesus fuck. That’s when the heavy drinking started. Seung Gil still wasn’t good at sharing his own past. Abandoned as a baby, put in a shitty government orphanage, then adopted internationally. His ‘parents’ had been swayed by pictures of Seung Gil as a pretty child with big brown eyes. They weren’t prepared for a child that never spoke, that hardly slept for nightmares, that cried every time he heard a loud noise. Eventually they gave him away. The couple they handed him over to was part of a cult, and Seung Gil lived there until he managed to run away as a teenager. He was found roaming the streets and starving by a police officer who brought him to the hospital where his wife worked. He’d ended up bouncing between foster homes for a few years until he finally aged out and brought himself to college. The wife was the reason he wanted to be a doctor. 

Yuri had cried. He’d never cried for himself, but Seung Gil had made him sob. After they’d gotten drunk they’d somehow stripped down to their boxers, and curled up in Yuri’s bed. Yuri was pretty sure he’d stayed awake for a couple hours cuddling Seung Gil and mumbling nonsense about keeping him safe now. Seung Gil had curled into Yuri, accepted the cuddling, and passed out within minutes. 

Yuri tightened his arms around Seung Gil. He'd never imagined they could be friends, but now that he knew him, he wouldn't want to live his life without him. Seung Gil was relaxed in his embrace, and they both continued to just lay that way. Seung Gil shifted to try and sit up, and Yuri held him tighter. Seung Gil pushed at his chest and lifted his head up to speak. 

“Yuri, you need to let go of me right now or I'm going to throw up on you.”

_**Five Months Later**_

Otabek still wasn't quite sure why he was required to attend a graduation celebration for Leo's boyfriend, but it wasn't the worst thing he'd done for friendship. The townhouse was nice, even if it was mostly empty at this point. From his own sporadic contact with Leo, Otabek understood Guang Hong had been accepted to grad school in the same town Leo worked. They had already signed the lease on a bigger apartment and Guang Hong had been moving things over for months. 

At least he wasn't alone. JJ and Bella were here as well. He'd had less time than he wanted to talk with them and it had been great to catch up. He'd seen Mila in the kitchen with a pretty dark haired girl, and fought the impulse to warn her friend about what a liar and manipulator she was. He scowled at his cup and drained his beer. He knew it had been almost two years, but he still couldn't get over what she'd done. In a lot of ways he still considered Yuri to be his best relationship, and in his mind Mila was responsible for ending that. 

Thinking of that, he wondered where Yuri was. This was his best friend's celebration, he should be here. He glanced around once more, and this time he noticed Yuri coming in the door hauling a case of beer and chatting with Seung Gil. When had that happened? 

Otabek waited, watching to see what Yuri would do. He expected snarls and yelling, but Yuri was smiling and chatting more easily than he's ever seen. And there was _touching_. Yuri and Seung Gil seemed to constantly have contact with each other, Yuri slinging a casual arm around Seung Gil's shoulder while he leaned in to mutter to him, or Seung Gil pushing Yuri's hair back behind his ear for him while he unloaded drinks into the fridge. Yuri grabbed his own beer and handed Seung Gil a water before he looked out into living room area. He grinned at someone, and grabbed Seung Gil's wrist to drag him into the room behind him to greet and exchange hugs with Mila and her friend. Otabek was so, so confused. 

“You're seeing this too, right?” JJ muttered off to his right, and Otabek nodded. Bella was curled into JJ's side, watching with narrowed eyes. Leo caught them staring and whispered something in Guang Hong's ear before making his way over to him. 

“You guys are being lame. Come talk with us.”

“Of course Leo, sorry, I'm just a little tired from the trip. Just, when did that happen?” Bella gestured to the couch where Seung Gil was sitting in the corner. Yuri was sitting sideways leaning against him, and had stretched his legs out over Mila's lap. The pretty dark haired girl was sitting on the arm of the couch, her legs behind Mila's back. Guang Hong had decided to join them, and was trying to find a way to lay across Yuri and Mila's laps comfortably. The whole pile was giggling and smiling at each other. 

“Oh that? Past year I guess. The whole group has been hanging out and studying together every week.” Leo grinned at the couch and dug his phone out of his pocket to take a quick picture. 

“No not that. That.” Bella indicated the end if the couch with her chin, “Yuri and Seung Gil. Are they together?” 

Leo looked at the couch again and shrugged, “I don't think so. I've never asked. Guang Hong said they got awfully close over the holidays though. It's nice to see them both so much happier, isn't it?”

Guang Hong called Leo's name, and he excused himself before walking back to him. Guang Hong was wrapped around Leo in an instant, whispering in his ear. Leo listened and smiled, asking a question before he nodded. Guang Hong whistled to get everyone's attention and waved them all closer. 

“So graduation wasn't the only reason we wanted you all here,” he started, mischief written on his face, “we also wanted you all here to celebrate our engagement with us!” 

There were screams from the couch, and Yuri and Mila jumped forward to hug their friend. Otabek clapped and moved forward to congratulate the couple as well, and when he pulled back from the crowd he was face to face with Yuri. 

“Otabek!” Yuri beamed at him, still caught up in his joy for his friend, “ I wasn't sure I'd see you! How have you been?”

“I'm good. Actually I was hoping to chat with you for a bit if you get a second.”

“Oh sure. Let's go in here.” Yuri grabbed Otabek's wrist and tugged him into a bedroom. Otabek recognized the bed and clothing as Yuri's. Most of his possessions were boxed up for him to move out already, and it left the room looking bare. 

Yuri moved to the corner and a plastic bag. He pulled something out and threw it at Otabek, “Put this on, it's yours anyway. I found it when I was packing.”

Otabek looked at his hands and recognized a shirt that he hadn't seen in almost two years. On one hand it warmed his heart to think Yuri had held onto this for all this time. On the other hand..

“What's wrong with my shirt?”

“Otabek I love cats, and even I think that shirt is hideous.” 

“It's the Wizard of Paws.” Otabek grumped, but pulled the henley on over his shirt anyways.

“That's much better.” Yuri grinned at him, and Otabek made a face before grinning back, “Here, I think this is yours too.”

Yuri handed him a leather jacket and this Otabek recognized right away. He had some very good memories of Yuri in this jacket. He'd spent some very conflicted nights jacking off to those same memories after Yuri stopped talking to him. He was reluctant to take the jacket. He would rather see Yuri in it again. 

Otabek took the jacket and stepped closer into Yuri's space. Yuri watched him with an amused quirk of his lips, not backing away, and Otabek reached up to cup his cheek. Yuri was more beautiful than he remembered and his mouth went straight. Otabek started to lean in, and Yuri stepped back. 

“Otabek. What are you doing?”

Otabek stammered and jumped back. He wanted to run, but Yuri hadn't moved at all, just stood there and watched him with steady eyes. It made Otabek brave enough to gesture between the two of them, and Yuri seemed to understand. 

“Oh Beka. I'm sorry. I can't do that right now. And I know that sounds like I'm saying ‘it's not you it's me’ and blowing you off, but I mean it.” Yuri twitched a little, and fell back on the bed with a sigh, “Will you sit with me? It feels weird to have you standing over me.”

Otabek moved slowly to the bed and sat gingerly on the edge. He leaned back so he could stare at the ceiling instead of being Yuri's eyes. “You don't owe me an explanation “

Yuri snorted at him before answering, “Oh I know. If therapy has taught me anything, it's how little I owe anyone.”

Otabek peeked at Yuri out of the corner of his eye, Yuri was still, but looking at him. “I didn't realize “

“Yeah, I started during Irina's trial last year, and it felt so good I just didn't stop? But I've learned I maybe don't have the healthiest relationship skills, and I don't think it's fair to be with someone while I'm still figuring my mess out, y'know?”

Otabek pondered that for a moment. This wasn't something he wanted to rush, and he didn't feel any pressure from Yuri to answer.

“I want you to know,” he started slowly, weighing each word, “that I wasn't exactly unaware you were terrible with relationships,” Yuri giggled and murmured something under his breath, and Otabek forced himself to keep talking, “but I never felt like it was a burden to me. I just thought you were the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen and I wanted to make you happy.”

Yuri quieted next to him, and at some point they had both shifted to lay facing each other. Yuri's eyes were shining, and Otabek was going to die if he made him cry. 

“Fuck.” Yuri whispered vehemently, and he wrapped his arms tight around his body. Otabek wanted to move closer and hold him, but he was determined to respect Yuri's decision on relationships, and he didn’t want to seem too forward. 

Yuri sniffled and brushed his eyes, reaching out to twine his fingers into Otabek's for a moment before releasing him, “I missed you. I mean mostly your dick, but I'd never had someone treat me so well, and it was just really nice. But I owe you an apology. I was really shitty, and I tried to make that all your fault.”

“Nothing to apologize for.” Otabek murmured, and the moment was so fragile and full of things Otabek didn't know how to handle so he just said the first thing he could think of, “So you really missed my dick?”

“Oh my god!” Yuri yelled and shoved Otabek off the bed. Otabek laid on the floor and laughed, and above him he could hear Yuri muttering about what an idiot he was between giggles. It was different, and new, but it felt good. Maybe this was the fresh start they actually needed two years ago. 

_**Two Months Later**_

“Last chance Yura.” 

“What you talkin’ bout Gilly?”

“All the drugs are gone but this blunt. Last chance to smoke with me.”

“.....yeah, whatever.”

_**Four Years Later**_

The message popped up on an otherwise truly terrible Wednesday. Otabek had grabbed his phone to call social services (again) for a little girl who kept missing appointments, always had strange bruises, and just wasn't developing the way she should. There wasn't enough to make a case yet, but the whole team was trying, documenting, and treating what they could when she actually showed up. A few years ago this was the kind of thing that would have sent Otabek home and straight into a bottle, but he'd followed Yuri's example and spent some time with a counselor. It still wasn't easy, but he'd learned to let the struggles motivate him at work, instead of burying him at home. 

The message from Yuri was a pleasant surprise. They'd talked more since being appointed as the best men for the Ji-de la Iglesia wedding extravaganza (wedding _disaster_ Yuri often grumbled through cake tasting and suit shopping) happening in the spring. Guang Hong had tried to hold off the wedding until he was done with all his schooling, but Leo decided he had waited long enough after Guang Hong finished his Master's. They would have the ceremony now, and the honeymoon in a couple years, whenever Guang Hong finished his doctorate. 

Yura (14:37): Hey fucker I have an interview at your hospital next week. Can I crash on your couch? 

Otabek (16:48): As long as you don't mind sharing with the dog.

==

“Beka, what the fuck is this?” 

“I told you you'd be sharing with the dog.” Otabek responded calmly to the shout from his living room where Yuri must have encountered Lupe. 

“I didn't think you were serious. Also, are you sure this is a dog?” 

Otabek finished the tea he was brewing and brought the tray to the living room, pushing past Yuri who was locked in a stare down with Lupe. 

Lupe for her part was sprawled on her back, legs in the air, and watching Yuri from her spot on the middle of the floor. He can understand the confusion. Lupe was probably some kind of Malamute mix, but she looked like a wolf. She also slept at least sixteen hours a day, and couldn’t even successfully hunt the occasional bug she came across. She shed a small mountain of fur every day, and had the worst gas on the planet. Otabek adored her unequivocally. 

Otabek put his tray down on the coffee table, and gestured for Yuri to join him. Yuri slunk over, watching Lupe the whole time. Otabek waited until he was sitting before giving the command.

“Lupe, say hello.” 

Yuri squawked at him, but Lupe was already up and trotting over. She sat in front of Yuri and held her paw up. Yuri looked between her and Otabek for a moment, but Otabek gestured him forward. Yuri took Lupe's paw and solemnly shook it. She gave a small lick to the back of his hand and looked expectantly at Otabek. He rewarded her with a quick ear scratch and a treat he'd had ready on the tray. 

Yuri looked at him like he was the most ridiculous creature on the planet then he said, “You named your dog Lupe? Doesn’t that mean wolf?”

Otabek could only laugh.

==

Otabek adored Lupe, but due to her shedding she was not allowed on his bed at all. She often chose to sleep on the cool wood floor of the living room instead. She was out there, in her favorite spot in front of the vent. Yuri had settled on the couch, and Otabek was waiting.

“Oh my god Beka what just came out of your dog’s ass!!!” 

A moment later the light was turned on and Otabek grinned at Yuri glowering in his door. Yuri had dragged along his blanket and pillow from the living room and worked to shove Otabek over on the bed. 

“You’re such a fucking jackass, I can’t believe you stuck me with that toxic ass animal, our friendship is revoked.”

Otabek was trying his best to keep his laughter muffled in his pillow, but Yuri started smacking him with his own pillow and he started to laugh harder. 

==

They’d started on separate sides of the bed, with their own separate blankets and pillows, but when Yuri woke up the next morning he was curled into Otabek’s chest and had a leg hitched over his thigh. He probably should have been embarrassed about the morning wood he was sporting, but he felt a match poking him in the stomach. There was something peaceful about this moment he hadn’t felt in a long time, so Yuri decided it was a good day to skip his morning jog. Instead he curled deeper into Otabek, and went back to sleep. 

_**Nine Months Later**_

The wedding was amazing. Guang Hong literally glowed the entire time from joy (although Yuri said it was probably all the highlighter, whatever that meant) and Leo sobbed throughout his vows. They’d found an amazing botanical garden for the reception, and the couple was surrounded by a backdrop of gorgeous flowers for their photos. 

Yuri looked just as good. He was sitting on the ground with Mila and some of Leo’s littlest cousins helping them make flower crowns. He already wore one in his own hair, and he carried the faintest flush from his champagne. 

Yuri had gotten the job at Otabek’s hospital, and they’d been spending more and more time together ever since. They normally grabbed dinner a couple times a week, and there had been a few times Otabek had woken to Yuri curled up in his bed. 

There was no rush to their new relationship. Instead they both were taking their time, but tonight Otabek knew it was time to take things further. He waited until Yuri was finished with the kids, taking his chance to catch up with JJ and a heavily pregnant Bella. When he saw Yuri was free he excused himself and snagged two fresh glasses of champagne

“Hey,” he greeted holding out the flute. Yuri grabbed it and gulped it greedily. It was warm in here. Otabek had already ditched his jacket and tie and rolled up his sleeves. Otabek offered a hand to help Yuri up, and wasn’t that surprised when Yuri used the momentum to pull himself flush with Otabek. 

“Dance with me.” Yuri ordered, but his eyes were soft. Whatever Otabek was feeling tonight, Yuri seemed to be feeling it too.

The night ended like so many others, with Yuri in his bed. This time instead of separating themselves, they curled together in the middle. This time instead of trying not to touch, they exchanged soft kisses until the sun was rising.

_**One Year Later**_

“Friends and family, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Otabek Altin and Yuri Plisetsky…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic would not have been possible without the beta input of thoughtsappear. If there's any mistakes they are all mine. 
> 
> Testicle toss can be referred to by it's PG names of ladder golf, or cowboy golf. This is just the name I used in college.
> 
> Wizard of Paws shirt found here: https://www.rageon.com/products/wizard-of-paws-t-shirt?nosto=productpage-nosto-1

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [tumblr](https://titaniumplatedspine.tumblr.com/)


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